Adventures at Oak Tree
by harllett
Summary: A strict head teacher, a cruel head of year, and a nasty Guy Gisborne make life in the sixth form difficult for our favourite gang of outlaws. AU Robin/Marian Will/Djaq Much/Eve/Allan angst
1. Not a good start to the year

**Disclaimer:** I don't own any of the BBC Robin Hood characters.

**Rating:** T (for language)

**Summary:** A strict head teacher, a cruel head of year, and a nasty Guy Gisborne make life in the sixth form difficult for our favourite gang of outlaws. AU Robin/Marian Will/Djaq Much/Eve

**Author's Note:** I started writing this just for fun really, basing it on my own experiences as a sixth former in Nottingham. A lot of things that happen actually happened at my school; for example, we got a new head teacher who tried to impose a lot of the rules that happen in this. He wasn't quite so evil or successful though! I wasn't sure whether or not to post it as there are so many great school fics out there. I decided I would, and I hope you like it.

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**Chapter 1: Not a good start to the year**

If there was one thing in the world Marian Fitzwalter hated, it was being late. Even worse was not having enough time to get ready before she was due to be somewhere. Unfortunately for her, her worst nightmare came true on the morning of her first day at the Oak Tree Comprehensive Sixth Form.

"Marian?" Edward Fitzwalter knocked on his only daughter's bedroom door before poking his head into the bedroom. "Marian? You need to get up, sweetheart."

A tousled head emerged from the duvet and a pair of sleepy blue eyes blinked at him. "Mmm?" the girl mumbled.

"It's quarter past eight Marian, time to get up."

"It's…what?!" The girl sat up in a panic, pushing her tangled curls out of her face and looking at her alarm clock wildly. "Damn!"

"Language!" Edward admonished gently.

"Sorry dad, I set my alarm for 6am! I wanted ages to get ready, but I'm supposed to be meeting Eve in fifteen minutes to walk to school."

"Do you want a lift?"

Marian smiled gratefully at her father. "Thanks, dad."

Edward left the room and Marian jumped out of bed, flinging her wardrobe door open and pawing frantically through her clothes as she cursed under her breath. So much for having two hours to wash her hair, get dressed, put her make up on and eat breakfast! The brilliant thing about sixth form was that students were allowed to wear their own clothes instead of uniform; the bad thing was that she had to choose the perfect outfit for her first day.

After throwing on her best pair of jeans and a long-sleeved green top she grabbed a hairbrush and began brushing her hair with one hand, reaching for her mobile with the other. Flipping the phone open she found the number for her friend Eve and pressed dial.

"Hey…yeah, not bad…I overslept, this is so not a good start to the year. Dad's giving me a lift, pick you up at the end of the road in ten minutes? Okay, cool. See you in a mo."

She hung up, finished brushing her hair and quickly put on some mascara and a layer of lip gloss before pulling on a brown cardigan and brown boots. Running down the stairs and into the kitchen she smiled as she saw a bowl waiting for her on the kitchen table, containing a Weetabix with sultanas and bananas arranged in the shape of a smiley face.

"Just like mum used to make." She smiled sadly at her father, who was sitting sipping a cup of tea, before splashing milk into her bowl and devouring the breakfast.

A few minutes later they had picked up Eve and the car was drawing to a halt outside the gates of Oak Tree Comp. Kissing her father goodbye Marian scrambled out of the car, slinging her bag over one shoulder. As the car drove away she looked at Eve who was standing beside her.

"Back to the grindstone," Marian said with a sigh. "Remind me why we chose further education?"

"Oh come on Marian, you know you can ace A Levels without even studying! And remember, we're sixth formers now, top of the food chain." Marian laughed and linked her arm through that of her friends as they began the walk up the drive to the school.

"I suppose today will be okay," Marian said. "Just the morning for orientation and back to bed this afternoon."

Eve nodded. "So what's going on with your dad?" she asked.

Marian sighed. "I told you we got that new head teacher, right?" Eve nodded. "Well, he offered my dad voluntary redundancy, so he took it."

"Why, though? He was a great teacher."

"Yeah but my dad reckons he wanted a new head of sixth form. He's appointed some rich git from down south, sounds like a bit of a muppet. Dad's still on the board of governors." Marian raised her hand to wave to a friend as they reached the school building.

"Do you know his name?"

"What, the head of sixth form? Mr Valey…Mr Vacant…something like that." She waved her hand vaguely.

"Mr Vacant?" Eve repeated with a snigger. Marian elbowed her playfully as they climbed the stairs to their registration room.

Sitting at the teacher's desk was a tall, imposing looking man with a big beard. He looked up at the girls as they entered but didn't smile, and Marian felt Eve nudge her as they walked to the back of the room and sat down.

Once the room was vaguely full the teacher stood up. "Good morning. I'm Mr. Little, some of you may know me as a History teacher here at the school. Now, I'm not really bothered what you do during registration as long as you show up and listen to me when I tell you the obvious things, like no hiding in the dumpsters and no sex in the toilets." His words garnered a few laughs from the students and he proceeded to take the register, before handing out timetables.

They spent the first period checking their timetables and going through some start of term notices before Mr. Little announced that they had to go to assembly. His announcement received the expected groans before the class clattered down the stairs, following him to the assembly hall.

**XX**

Allan A Dale was late. That was nothing new, so Will Scarlett wasn't worried as he sat waiting for his friend on a wall at the end of his street. His long legs dangled against the graffitied brick work, Converse trainers swinging back and forth as he kicked his heels at the wall.

It was strange, Will thought as he waited, that he was friends with Allan A Dale at all. They were polar opposites in many ways; he was almost painfully shy, polite, studious, whilst Allan was extrovertly confident, cheeky, and had only just scraped the grades required to be admitted to the sixth form. He had only chosen to stay at Oak Tree because Will was there, and because it meant putting off real life for another two years.

He had been best friends with Allan since he was four, and couldn't remember the first time he had met him. In his memory, Allan had always been there, impossible to get rid of and always hanging around like a bad smell. Not that Will minded; he didn't know quite what he would do without Allan.

His mother had told him the story of how they had met many times, laughing at the anecdote. On his first day at primary school she had kissed little Will goodbye and he had watched her leave with sad eyes, lower lip trembling. As he stood there another boy, with a tangle of blonde hair and flashing blue eyes, had barreled into him and told him to stop being such a baby, before grabbing his book bag and running off with it. Allan had spent that first day sticking his tongue out at Will at every chance he got, but by afternoon playtime he had broken his favourite toy truck. Will fixed it for him, and that was it.

It had been the same ever since; Allan teasing, laughing at him when he stuttered whilst talking to girls and trying to make him stand up for himself, whilst Will fixed all of Allan's mistakes and picked up his mess. That didn't mean it was a one-sided friendship; they relied on each other, and Will was eternally grateful for his friendship. Allan was handsome and funny, could have been part of the popular crowd at the comprehensive and left Will to sit in the corner doodling in his sketch book, but he hadn't. He had stayed at Will's side since day one and the two were inseparable.

Apart from when Allan was late, which happened with irritating regularity.

As if he had summoned Allan by thinking about him, the boy in question jogged around the corner, shooting Will one of his lopsided grins in greeting. Will sighed and jumped down from the wall, slinging his bag over his body and falling into step beside his friend.

"Sorry about this, mate. Dad was…"

"It's alright, I understand," Will replied quietly. He had feared as much; Allan's dad was not the most reliable of parents. In fact, irresponsible and wild as Allan was when with his friends, he was more like the adult at home.

"Sixth form, Will! We're going up in the world!" Allan gloated, changing the subject from one of sadness to one of silliness as only Allan could. "Just think, all those little minions will be running around in their blazers kissing the feet of the teachers whilst we're lazing around in the common room."

"We have to go to class too," Will reminded his friend.

"Yeah, but we get free periods! And a common room!" Allan slung an arm around his friend's shoulders. "I have a good feeling about this year. It's going to be awesome."

Before long they were at the school, slouching in seats at the back of their registration room. Just before the teacher entered an unfamiliar boy swaggered into the room, with untidy blonde hair and a disinterested expression that was a study in nonchalance. Allan nudged Will with a grin as the boy walked to the back of the room and slumped into a seat in front of them.

"Something funny?" the boy asked, twisting round in his seat. Will shook his head but Allan just smirked at the newcomer.

"Only your face," he commented, the smile still playing at his lips.

With a growl the boy launched himself towards Allan, just as their registration tutor walked in and shouted at him to calm down. The boy collapsed back into his seat and glowered at Allan.

Will elbowed his friend and offered a hand to the new boy. "I'm Will."

The boy sneered at the greeting, but Will kept eye contact with him, his hand steady. After a long pause the boy grasped his hand and shook it. "Roy."

"You're new, aren't you?"

"Yeah. Went to Greendale Comp, they don't have a sixth form. Wish I didn't have to come to this crap hole, but my mum wants me to do A Levels."

"It's not so bad here," Will reassured him.

"It's a school, ain't it?" Roy retorted.

Allan sniggered, and both Will and Roy looked at him in surprise. "I'm Allan," he said, offering his hand to Roy. Neither of them noticed Will smiling to himself.

The boys sat chatting through the first period of sixth form orientation until they were summoned to the assembly. Allan led Will and Roy into the back row, collapsing into a seat and putting his feet up against the chair in front of him. The blonde girl sitting on the chair turned round and glared at him. Allan responded with one of his winning grins and a wink, and chuckled to himself as the blonde turned round again, her pale skin tinged with pink.

"Hey, who's that?" he asked, nudging Will. Will looked up at the stage at the front of the hall and frowned. Instead of Mr. King, the head teacher, there was a younger man with a sterner face.

"No idea," Will whispered back. "He's new, too." He pointed at a different teacher, lurking in the shadows at the edge of the stage. He looked short and rotund, but he couldn't make out the strangers features.

The man standing in the centre of the stage cleared his throat loudly and the students in the hall gradually settled down, whispered conversations ending as they turned to look at the newcomer.

"Good morning," he boomed, his voice echoing around the quiet hall. "I am Mr. Prince. Most of you won't know this but I am taking over the headship for this year."

"Where's Mr King?" a voice piped up in front of the stage.

"He is…indisposed," the new head rumbled. "Personal reasons. Now, the other important personnel change this year is your head of sixth form. Unfortunately Mr. Fitzwalter has chosen to retire early." His announcement was met with a groan; Mr. Fitzwalter was popular with the students. "Alright, settle down," Mr. Prince continued. "In his place I have appointed Mr. Vaysey."

The man who had been lurking in the shadows stepped out onto the stage and Allan sniggered. "Nice shoes," he muttered to Will, who managed to suppress his smile at the sight of the new teacher's Birkenstocks.

"Good morning, children," Mr. Vaysey greeted them, with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. The students immediately bristled at the greeting; it was not a good idea to refer to a room full of sixteen year olds tasting their first independence as children.

"Now, along with the new staff, I have decided on a few other changes," Mr. Prince continued smoothly. "I believe discipline and rules have been lax in this school, and I plan on changing that."

"I don't like the sound of this," Allan whispered to Will, who nodded with a nervous look at his friend.

**XX**

A few blocks away another new Oak Tree sixth former was running late as well. In stark contrast to Marian, Robin Locksley was not at all bothered by his tardiness. Much like Will and Allan, he expected to be late.

"Robin!" An anxious voice sounded at his bedroom door and Robin laughed.

"Two seconds, Much."

"You said that ten minutes ago!" the voice returned, but its owner turned and padded down the stairs.

Robin grinned at his reflection in the mirror as he finished waxing his hair, and then sprayed on a dose of deodorant. He was glad to have Much; as annoying as the worried voice in his ear often was, he knew he needed the guidance.

Much had been a fixture in his life for as long as he could remember. He had been born just two weeks after Robin and lived next door whilst growing up. His mum had been a single mother, with no family to speak of; she had been excluded from her family when she fell pregnant at sixteen, and Robin's parents had kept an eye out for her and her son. Lucy Miller had died when Much was only nine, and it had seemed perfectly natural for the Locksleys to welcome the boy into their home and raise him as if he were Robin's brother.

Once the boys finished primary school, Robin's father had taken a job in the Middle East, uprooting the family and moving them away. Just a few weeks previously he had been offered a transfer back to England and the family had moved home to Nottingham, so the boys could take A Levels at the school that they would have attended had they not left.

Much was slightly apprehensive about going back, but Robin couldn't wait. There was someone he was looking forward to catching up with.

"Robin!" came Much's exasperated yell from downstairs.

"Alright, alright!" Robin shouted back. He pulled a hoody on, quickly readjusted his hair, and gave himself one last self-satisfied look in the mirror before leaving his room and taking the steps two at a time.

"We are so late," Much fussed he hurried Robin out the front door. "We've missed registration, probably most of first period!"

"Relax," Robin replied infuriatingly. "You take life too seriously, Much."

Much continued muttering to himself as the walked down the road towards the school. As they entered the gate a teacher caught sight of them.

"No trespassing please lads," he called to them.

"We're sixth formers," Robin called back.

"We're late," Much added. "Sorry sir."

"You need to get yourselves to the assembly hall, through that door then second door on the right."

"Thank you!" Much called as they followed his instructions.

"Time to make an entrance," Robin declared, a confident grin on his face.

**XX**

Marian was sitting in the assembly staring at Mr. Prince in horror. He had just reeled off a list of new rules and regulations, the group of students getting more and more restless as he continued.

"And finally," he said firmly, his voice rising above the babble of disquiet. "You all look so messy and uncoordinated sitting in front of me in your baggy jeans and baseball caps. It doesn't make the school look very professional, which has led me to decide to impose school uniform on the sixth form."

"WHAT!" Marian shouted, but her voice was drowned out by the explosion of angry voices in the room. Not wearing uniform was part of the independence and importance of being a sixth former at Oak Tree.

"Quiet!" Mr. Prince shouted, waving his hands and scowling at the students. "Everybody, quiet down, before I give the whole sixth form a detention."

The outraged crowd calmed down slightly, their annoyance subsiding to a bitter mumble. "This is taking the piss," Marian whispered furiously to Eve.

"I can see you're all upset," Mr. Prince continued his speech. "But you must all have your uniforms from last year."

"I burned mine," came a loud voice from the back of the hall. Marian frowned; that voice was somehow familiar. "Or at least I would have done, if I'd been here last year. The uniforms are shit."

Marian twisted in her seat as the rest of the students craned their necks to see who was speaking so disrespectfully, and her mouth dropped open in shock as her eyes landed on the young man lounging against the open door, a cocky grin on his face. He was taller and more muscular than the last time she had seen him, but his arrogant stance was the same.

"Who are you?" Mr. Prince asked, his voice laden with anger at being so publicly challenged.

"Yeah, who is it?" Eve whispered.

Marian narrowed her eyes at the boy. "Robin Locksley," she answered for him.

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**Author's Note:** If you like it, or hate it, or have any questions or suggestions, review and let me know please!


	2. So you do like him

**Chapter 2: So you do like him**

"I can't believe this uniform nonsense," Eve muttered for perhaps the tenth time that morning. She and Marian were sitting in their registration room on the first day of classes, and the whole room was buzzing with conversation about the strict new rules being imposed by the head teacher.

"At least we don't need it until next week," Marian tried to look on the bright side. They had been given a few days before uniform was required to give everyone time to make sure they had it. Her mood worsened as the door swung open and Robin sauntered in, sending her a cheeky grin as he slid into the seat in front of her.

"Long time no see, Marian," he said in greeting.

"Did you watch Eastenders last night?" Marian asked Eve, pointedly ignoring Robin's attempt at conversation.

"Erm…" she replied, eyes flicking between her friend and Robin.

"Aw c'mon Marian, it's been five years, we need to catch up," he tried again.

"How about Coronation Street?" Marian again directed her comment at Eve.

"Oh you always did sit up there on your high horse," Robin muttered.

"Excuse me?" Marian's voice was icy as she turned to look at Robin for the first time.

Eve looked uncertainly at Much, who shrugged. "Hi, I'm Much," he introduced himself. "Just ignore Robin, you'll get used to him."

"I'm just saying, Marian, you always did think you were better than everyone else."

"Me? I think you'll find you were always the one who thought you were untouchable, thought you were higher than everyone else," Marian snapped.

"Whatever you say, princess."

Marian choked, eyes wild as she glared at Robin. "How dare you…"

"Don't get your knickers in a twist, princess." He grinned at her cheekily.

"You arrogant, conceited, son of a…" she spluttered. "You come strutting in here after five years, making yourself the centre of attention, you are the most egotistical person I've ever had the misfortune to meet!"

"I knew you missed me," he replied, enjoying Marian's fury. "Come on Marian, I was standing up for the whole sixth form, those uniform rules are bull and you know it."

"Oh and you were so successful weren't you! Landing yourself in detention five seconds after arriving at the school! Really impressive Robin," she jeered. "Really struck a blow for freedom there didn't you."

Much and Eve breathed sighs of relief as the bell rang, interrupting their sparring match. Marian stood up and flounced out of the room, Eve chasing after her. Robin turned to Much with his irrepressible smirk firmly in place. "She missed me," he declared.

**XX**

"Bloody Robin." Marian was still muttering about the encounter with her old friend as she and Eve walked into the common room at lunch. As within the school there was a distinct social hierarchy that existed in the common room, and which social circle you were in determined where you sat. Glancing to her left Marian saw Robin lounging in an arm chair at the far end, Much sitting at his side. Rolling her eyes she turned to the right and joined the group that were sitting on the sofas there.

"Marian!" A tall youth with a mop of black hair looked up as she walked towards the sofas. "There's a seat here." He patted the spot on the sofa next to him and Marian sat down, trying to hide a grimace.

"Thanks Guy," she said, as Eve shot her a sympathetic look from across the circle. They were part of the so-called popular crowd but neither of them particularly liked any of the others. It was just easier to be popular and untouchable than make a stand against the shallow gossip of the group.

"I saw you in English," he said to her. "Would have sat next to you but there was no room." Marian made a noncommittal noise. "What else are you taking?"

"Psych, French and History," she replied.

"Same as me! Except the French. I'm taking PE instead. Can I see your timetable?"

Marian dutifully handed over the piece of paper and rolled her eyes as Guy feigned surprise at their matching timetables. She had told him which subjects she had chosen before the summer holiday, so knew he had purposely chosen three out of four the same so he could spend time with her.

"He's a creep," Eve mouthed across the circle and Marian grinned. She caught Robin's gaze and quickly turned her grin into a frown, not missing Robin's delighted laughter as she looked away.

**XX**

Marian had never been so thankful to have Eve as a friend as she did the following period. Well, she'd always been thankful to have Eve as a friend; really, she was just thankful that Eve and herself were so similar they had picked the same subjects. That meant that even though Guy seemed to have taken it upon himself to stalk her, she could escape him in class by snagging a table with Eve, rather than feeling obliged to sit with him.

As they walked into History following the lunch break Eve swiftly grabbed a two person desk and sat down, Marian dropping into the chair beside her. Obviously irritated, Guy sat in front of them, leaving Marian to pray that the teacher would not suggest group work. With an internal groan she saw Robin swagger into the room, but after throwing her a quick grin he moved to the back of the room.

As the lesson ended and they packed up their things Guy turned to Marian. "I have a free period now," he began.

"Lucky you," Marian replied. "You get to go home early."

"Well, I was wondering if you wanted me to wait for you. I could walk you home." He looked at her hopefully.

"Erm, no, that's okay…me and Eve always walk home together," Marian replied, before grabbing hold of her friend and hauling her out of the classroom.

Eve burst out laughing as soon as they rounded a corner. "I think you just broke his heart."

Marian snorted. "You'd think he'd take the bloody hint!"

"Now we've finally got rid of him, what's the deal with you and that Locksley bloke?" Eve asked, slipping her arm through that of her friend.

"Nothing," Marian replied, carefully staring straight ahead.

"Oh come on, you two have got more chemistry than the Science labs! I've known you for five years, I know when something's going on."

Marian sighed. "We were friends during primary school. Best friends. Then his dad got a job abroad and they moved away, summer before I started here. That's it."

"So why are you so mad at him?"

Marian shrugged in response as they reached their classroom and slipped inside just before the teacher closed the door. She was relieved that Eve would have to stop questioning her, for now at least.

Settling back in her seat, listening to the typical "Welcome back to Oak Tree, you have a year of hard work ahead of you" speech from the teacher, Marian couldn't help but have her mind drift back to Robin.

When she and Robin had been younger, they had been the best of friends. Much had been around then too, but she and Robin had been inseparable. Somehow the phase both of them had gone through of hating the opposite sex had not extended to each other. Their parents had always joked that they'd get married one day, but both of them always scoffed at the suggestion. Their relationship was platonic, pure and simple; it just worked. Robin bolstered Marian's confidence, whilst she kept his in check; he was a great football player, but she never let him get cocky.

They were always playing, or running outside to dig up worms, or pursuing Robin's latest harebrained scheme. He had always been getting the two of them into mischief, making stupid plans that Marian had willingly gone along with.

She couldn't help but smile at the memory of one such incident. Marian's mother had been alive at the time, and Marian loved it when her mum had been getting ready to go and sprayed on some lovely perfume. Her mother had told her gently that she was too young for grown up perfume, but to make her own out of rose petals and water. She had gathered all the fallen rose petals from the lawn and just set about making perfume when Robin showed up and laughed at her for being such a girl. He soon changed his tune when he came up with the stupid idea of making lots of it and selling it to the local girls.

She could still see his pleading puppy dog eyes when he said that they would need loads of rose petals, so she should let him into her back garden and they could take them from the big rosebush there. That rosebush had been Mrs Fitzwalter's pride and joy, and when she had gone into the garden to find every single petal stripped from the plant she had been furious. Robin had been sent home in disgrace and Marian to her room. They never did get to sell that perfume.

Marian's smile faltered as the image of eight year old, mischievous Robin faded to be replaced by an image of arrogant, cocksure, sixteen year old Robin. Surely she should be pleased that her oldest friend was back in town. Why _was_ she so mad at him?

Maybe it was because he reminded her of everything she had tried to get away from in her five years at Oak Tree. When she was younger, she had been a complete tomboy. She had kept her hair short, always had dirty hands, was always ripping the knees of her jeans from scrabbling around on the floor. It hadn't mattered when Robin was there, because she wasn't interested in other friends. She had Robin, and that was what counted. Then all of a sudden he was gone, and the awkward, boyish, mischievous girl had to try and find a place in a brand new school with unknown people. She had met Eve on her first day at the terrifying new school and gradually changed into more of a girl, growing her hair long, experimenting with make up, and becoming interested in boy bands and cute actors.

Maybe she blamed Robin for leaving her to go through that alone. Her mother had died, she had no sisters, and had to cope with turning into a young woman on her own. It was especially difficult for her because for so long Robin had kept her as one of the lads, kicking a football around and playing wrestling games instead of Barbies.

Maybe it was because after he left, abandoning her in the bewildering world of comprehensive school and puberty, he had lost touch so quickly. He had stopped calling, stopped emailing; Marian sent letters, packages containing his favourite chocolate, silly postcards to make him laugh, and got nothing in return.

The rational part of her brain told her that it had been five long years since that happened, almost a third of her short life, and she shouldn't bear a grudge. But the larger, emotional part of her brain was furious with him for letting their friendship slip away so easily. It had been the most important thing in Marian's world, and realising that it obviously didn't mean much to Robin had broken her heart.

Lost in thought, Marian barely noticed the class passing until the bell rang to signal the end of the day. As soon as they were out of the classroom Eve began to question her about Robin again, but a glare from Marian soon made her stop.

**XX**

Much was so busy trying to force his Geography folder back into his overstuffed backpack that he walked straight into someone else as he left his classroom.

"Steady!" Robin laughed, catching his friend by the shoulders.

"What are you doing here?" Much asked suspiciously as he fell into step beside his friend. "You were free this period, I thought you were going home."

"I thought I'd be nice and wait to walk home with you," Robin replied. Much wasn't convinced and his suspicions were proved correct as they left the school grounds and saw two girls walking up the road ahead of them. "Oh look, there's Marian," Robin said happily.

Much snorted. "Right, as if you're surprised. You knew she had fifth period, didn't you?"

"I don't know what you mean," Robin replied innocently. "But we're here now, let's catch them up."

"Wait!" Much caught hold of his bag. ""I really don't think that's a good idea Robin. She doesn't seem very pleased that you're here."

"Then I need to win her over! C'mon Much, you know how much I was looking forward to seeing her. And her friend is pretty cute, maybe we could go on a double date." Robin gave him a winning smile and Much sighed, letting go of his friend's bag and following slowly as Robin ran up behind Marian and Eve. "Hi Marian," he opened, slinging an arm around her shoulders.

Marian shrugged him off with a growl. "What is it with blokes not taking the hint today? I'm not interested in talking to you, alright?"

"Look, Major, I don't know what I'm supposed to have done to upset you, but I haven't seen you for five years! Just talk to me," Robin pleaded.

Marian tensed at the use of his old nickname for her. She hadn't been called that in over five years, and it was the overwhelming rush of sentimentality that washed over her at the simple word that found her saying, "Fine. Hi."

"Hi," Robin grinned. "That's better."

There were a few moments of greetings, with Marian finally welcoming Much home with a warm hug and Much, Robin and Eve all being formally introduced.

"Where do you guys live now?" Marian asked.

"Up on Drover Street," Robin replied. "Are you still on Sycamore?" Marian nodded. "I really wanted our old house back but obviously that wasn't going to happen." He pointed at his and Much's old home, which had come into sight as they turned the corner onto a different road. "Who lives there now?"

"Erm…a lad in our year, actually," Marian replied. "His name is Guy Gisborne."

"Speak of the devil," Eve muttered as a tall, lanky youth in football shorts and a t-shirt stepped out of the house.

Robin's eyebrows raised and a smirk twisted his lips at the sight of Guy, whose slightly sallow face had lit up at the sight of Marian approaching. Guy's eyes narrowed as he took in Robin loping alongside Marian.

"Hi, Marian," he greeted her, still glaring at Robin. "Where are you going?"

"Home," Marian replied, Eve trying not to laugh at the stupidity of the question. "Do you have a game?" She indicated the football tucked under his arm.

"Nah, just going for a kickaround."

"This is Robin," Marian finally answered his unvoiced question. "And Much."

"We used to live here," Robin added, pointing at the house behind Guy.

"Oh." Guy's lip lifted in a sneer. "That was your awful wallpaper and hideous carpet then?"

Robin growled and took a half step forward before Much stopped him with a hand. "We liked it," he replied amicably.

Guy looked down disdainfully at Much. "Right. Marian, do you want to come and watch?"

"The football?" She wrinkled her nose. "No, thanks."

"You any good?" Robin asked, indicating the football.

"The best," Guy replied arrogantly.

"Really?" Robin tried to suppress a grin. "I'm impressed."

"I'll see you tomorrow, Marian," Guy told the girl, ignoring Robin, before jogging off. He was barely out of sight when Robin let out a guffaw of laughter.

"Robin!" Marian chastised, hitting him on the arm.

"What an idiot!" Robin choked out through his laughter.

"He's not so bad," Marian replied defensively. "Come on Eve." Grabbing her friend's arm she pulled her across the road and up an alleyway, a shortcut to their homes, knowing that Robin and Much would have to go in a different direction.

"He's not so bad?" Eve asked as they turned a corner. "Is this the same Guy we're talking about, the Guy that you haven't been able to stand for five years?"

"I only said it to piss Robin off," Marian replied.

"Aha! So you do like him!" Eve was triumphant as Marian elbowed her to shut up.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I wasn't going to update this for a couple of days but I was so excited by the nice reviews that I decided to get a chapter up tonight!! I hope you like :)


	3. Quit while you're ahead

**Chapter 3: Quit while you're ahead**

Robin was not a big fan of academia, but he loved sport. That was why he had chosen to take PE at A Level. As a rule, he was also not a fan of double periods, but on Wednesday afternoons he had been scheduled for a double period of PE, which would make it bearable.

Trying not to laugh as Much trotted off to his Textiles class, being the only boy in the whole sixth form to choose the subject, Robin slung his kit bag over his shoulder and headed towards the changing rooms. He looked around expectantly; he had a sneaking suspicion that the greasy git from the night before, the one that had tried to ask out Marian (and failed miserably, to Robin's glee), would be taking PE.

A grin slowly spread across Robin's face as his eyes landed on Guy. He had been hoping for this; now he would get to see these brilliant football skills of Guy's, and show him that actually, Robin Locksley was the best. Because Robin Locksley was always the best at football.

Robin dropped his kit bag in a changing stall next to two lads with similar tousled blonde hair. He nodded a greeting but they were already changed, and jogged out of the changing room as he pulled his shirt over his head.

Robin got changed quickly but was still the last one ready, jogging out of the room and across the car park to the football pitch, the studs on his boots clattering against the concrete. The teacher wasn't there yet but a few of the guys were kicking footballs back and forth or stretching to warm up. Over on the far side of the pitch the two blondes from the changing room were kicking a ball between them, but as Robin watched Guy slide-tackled one of them, sending him to the ground.

Frowning, Robin headed over towards the altercation. The guy on the ground had scrambled to his feet, blue eyes flashing with anger. "What the hell was that, Guy? We're only warming up, you muppet."

"Shut up," Guy growled, towering over the indignant blonde.

"Just leave it out, lads," the other blonde said.

"What are you going to do about it?" another lad, who looked like one of Guy's friends, asked as he squared up to him.

"Maybe if you didn't hang around with that skinny little nerd we wouldn't be having this conversation," Guy said to the one he had knocked down. "Just ditch him, Allan, and we can all be friends."

"Yeah cos I really want you for a mate don't I?" Allan returned, glaring at Guy. "And don't talk about Will like that!"

"Oh, sorry, did I insult your little boyfriend?" Guy teased.

Allan lunged for him, trying to throw a punch, but Robin leapt forward and caught his arm. "He's not worth it," he told Allan.

"Stay out of this, Locksley," Guy ordered. "It doesn't concern you."

"It does, actually. This is the second time in two days I've found you bothering people who aren't interested. First Marian, and now Allan."

"Leave Marian out of this," Guy spat.

Robin smirked. "Truth hurts, does it? She doesn't want anything to do with you."

Guy lunged for him and this time it was Allan who had to protect Robin, jumping between the two of them just as the teacher blew his whistle and called them over. "Just settle it on the pitch, ey, lads?" Allan suggested.

Robin smirked. "I'll be glad to."

"Anyone want to be team captain?" the teacher asked as the group of boys gathered around him. Guy and Robin both threw their arms up. The teacher blinked, looking slightly surprised, and then shrugged. "Pick teams then, boys."

"Simon," Guy said instantly, and the boy who had been at his side during the argument joined him.

"Allan," Robin picked, and the blonde jogged over.

"Tony," Guy chose.

"Er…you," Robin decided, beckoning over Allan's friend.

"I'm Roy," he said as he joined them. "Please let's beat those guys, they're absolute idiots."

"Don't worry, we will," Robin assured him, brimming with his usual confidence.

They beat Guy's team 4-1.

**XX**

"Did you see his face?" Allan snorted as the three left the changing room later. "Couldn't believe he lost."

"I'd rather eat horse shit than lose to that muppet," Robin replied, running a hand through his damp hair. "What's the deal with him anyway, why is he so far up his own arse?"

"He's been leader of the popular crowd all through school," Allan replied. "God knows why, he's a total slimeball. Most people hate him though, even some of the popular ones."

"Does he have a girlfriend?" Robin asked casually.

"Nah, you think any girl wants to run their hands through that greasy hair? He's been after Marian Fitzwalter for years but she's got too much sense. Hey, there's Will."

"Is that the 'skinny little nerd'?" Robin said under his breath as a tall, slender brunette walked towards them.

"Yeah," Allan replied with a laugh. "He's not that bad, just likes Science. And he's my best mate, so don't even think about laughing at him or I'll lamp you."

"Oh come on, who do you think I am, Guy?"

The three laughed as Will joined them. "Hey, Allan. Hey Roy. Hey…"

"Robin," he supplied, offering his hand to shake. "I'd better go, meeting my mate at the gates."

"We'll walk with you," Allan offered, and the four fell into step as they approached the gate. Much was waiting there, and Robin introduced him before the pair split off and started walking home.

"They seem nice," Much offered as they strolled towards home.

"Yeah, they are. But that Gisborne is a total pratt."

"Uh oh," Much muttered as he looked at his friend.

"What?" Robin asked.

"You've got that look on your face again," Much said worriedly. "That face that means you want to put the world to rights."

Robin grinned. "Well, if there's anything wrong at Oak Tree its Gisborne. And he's going down."

Much groaned. "That's just what I was afraid of."

**XX**

Robin grinned as he walked out of his Media Studies class with Allan and saw Marian hurrying up the school drive, looking flustered. It was rare to see her alone; she was always with Eve.

"I'll see you later, mate," he said to Allan, before dashing off to intercept Marian. "Where's your shadow?" he asked conversationally as he fell into step beside her.

"Where's yours?" she snapped back at him.

"Touché," Robin replied with a laugh. "He was free first period, he's probably in the common room. So where's Eve?"

"In the common room too," she replied. "We didn't have first period, Eve made it in for registration but I overslept."

As they rounded a corner Marian stopped dead. Ahead, half hidden behind a tree, were Guy and a couple of his cronies, looming over a cowering year 7. As she watched, Guy childishly peanutted the boy's tie, laughing cruelly.

"Guy!" she yelled, starting forwards. Robin tried to catch hold of her but she wrenched herself out of his grip. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Leave him alone!"

Guy mouthed silently at her, seemingly unaware of how to feign innocence. "He was laughing at me," was his eventual, weak excuse.

"To be honest, Guy, _I_ laugh at you a lot of the time! What are you going to do, bully me now?" she raged at him.

Guy's eyes hardened. "I think you're forgetting your place, Marian," he said coldly.

"I'd forget my place too, if it meant I was standing within ten feet of you." Robin sauntered up behind Marian, then stepped half in front of her. "I'll deal with this," he said to her.

"Excuse me? You'll do what? I think you'll find I'm dealing with this quite well on my own!" She turned back to Guy. "I knew you were an idiot, Guy. I didn't know you were a bully as well."

Turning on her heel, Marian stalked off. She was furious with Guy, furious with Robin, and generally in a foul mood with the world.

"Marian!" Robin called, chasing after her. "What did I do wrong?"

Marian whirled around. "Coming over, standing up for me as if I couldn't look after myself! How dare you act like I need protecting? I've coped quite well by myself for the past five years, I don't need you to act the hero!" With that she stormed off, leaving Robin blinking at her retreating back, before he came to his senses and went to his RE class.

Collapsing onto a chair next to Much he didn't notice his friend's excited trembling until Much elbowed him firmly in the ribs. "Robin! I was talking to Eve earlier, and she said she's going to the school choir at lunchtime, and asked me to go too!"

"Score," Robin muttered sarcastically. Much looked at him, hurt. "Sorry mate. Sounds like a hot date." He managed a grin.

"It's not a date," Much replied, though his cheeks were flushed. "She's cute, though," he admitted, before starting an endless ramble about whether or not she liked him and what he should say to her. Robin barely heard; he was too busy wondering how he kept screwing things up with Marian, and why she had been so angry to see him back at school.

**XX**

The bell rang to signal the end of second period and the start of break, and Robin and Much returned to the common room. They, Allan, Roy and Will commandeered a set of sofas at the far left hand end of the room, opposite Guy and the rest of his crowd.

Robin sat watching Gisborne, his eyes narrowed. "That pratt Gisborne needs taking down a peg or two," he muttered, half to himself.

"What do you suggest?" Allan asked, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "Whatever it is, I'm in."

"Me too," Roy agreed.

The three of them looked at Much, who was steadfastly staring in the other direction. "I don't agree with you, but Robin always wins me over so I'm not even going to try and argue," he said, without looking at any of them.

Robin grinned. "Will?"

The quiet boy looked up, and Robin was surprised to see mild fury in his eyes. "I'm in too," he said softly. "He's a bully, and if it wasn't for Allan I'd have been bullied out of the school by now."

Blinking slightly at the honesty of the admission Robin looked at Allan. "Any ideas?"

"I have one," Roy said with a grin. "We did it at my old school, worked like a charm. Does Gisborne have a locker?"

Allan nodded. "He's on the football team; he has a locker in the sports block. Down the corridor from the changing rooms."

Roy's grin turned into a smirk. "Perfect," he laughed as he beckoned the others forward to share his plan.

**XX**

"Are you sure you don't want to come to choir?" Eve asked Marian as they left their History class before lunch.

"I'm sure," Marian replied for the tenth time. "Thanks, though."

"You'll be on your own in the common room, though, and Guy…Guy isn't going to be very happy."

Marian laughed. "I'm a big girl, I can look after myself. Now get going." She gave her friend a gentle push in the direction of the music room and headed towards the common room. Walking in she looked to the right and saw Guy lording it over a group of their friends. He caught her eye and glared at her. Marian rolled her eyes and looked to the left, where Robin was sprawled over a sofa and winked at her.

With a growl at the annoyingness of men, Marian turned around and flounced out.

**XX**

Much was watching the door nervously, waiting for Eve to appear. He was slightly afraid that this was all a joke; why would the beautiful, funny, sweet girl want to spend time with him?

Just before his mind exploded from fretting Eve walked in, smiling at him and she walked over and sat beside him. "Hey," she greeted him.

"Hi," Much replied nervously. "How are you?"

"Fine," Eve responded. "Well, a bit worried about Marian actually. She's in the common room on her own, and Guy is in there…I think he's really angry at her."

"He wouldn't hurt her though, would he?"

Eve shrugged. "I guess not, and I know Marian can stand up for herself. I'm just glad she stood up to him earlier, he's such an idiot."

"Don't worry, he'll get what's coming to him," Much replied confidently before mentally kicking himself. _Oops. Maybe it was meant to be a secret plan._

"What do you mean?" Eve asked curiously.

"I can't really say," Much replied awkwardly. "All I will say is make sure you stay away from the sports block tomorrow at lunchtime."

**XX**

"Coast is clear!" Allan hissed as he peered around the corner into the corridor that was home to the sports lockers. The gang followed him down to the lockers. Robin, Allan and Roy had had PE the previous period and Allan had loitered in the corridor to find out which was Guy's.

They quickly located the locker and Will, who had proved to be quite the criminal mastermind, stepped forward with an uncoiled paperclip and began picking the lock. He made short work of the padlock and opened the door, all five of them shrinking back from the smell of stale sweat that flooded from the locker.

Roy pulled a small sachet from his pocket and took the sports shirt and shorts from the locker, quickly turning them inside out. Pulling on a pair of rubber gloves he ripped open the sachet and sprinkled its contents, which happened to be itching powder, onto the inside of Guy's sports kit. Turning it the right way round he shoved it back into the locker, then sprinkled the last of the powder into his socks for good measure.

**XX**

Eve and Marian walked into the common room at lunch time. They looked to the right but Guy ignored them, and the rest of their so-called friends followed suit. They sat down at a table in the middle of the room.

"Two faced, weak, spineless…" Marian muttered about the adoring girls gathered around Guy. She knew they weren't true friends, had never quite trusted them with secrets in case they were used against her, but it still hurt that they had been dropped from the group simply because Guy was angry with her. None of the others had even asked to hear Marian's side of the story.

"We could have sat with Much and the rest, if they were here," Eve commented.

"I wouldn't sit with Robin if it was the last chair on earth," Marian declared, frowning even as she spoke at her strange choice of words. "Where are they anyway?"

Eve grinned, leaning forwards. "Much said they were planning some revenge on Guy," she whispered conspiratorially. "Something to do with the sports block."

Marian's brow furrowed. "What on earth are they doing in the sports block?"

Eve shrugged. "No idea, but I hope it's good."

As they sat chatting Guy stood up, feeling in his pockets. "Can't find my phone," he said in response to someone asking what was up. "Damn, I had PE last period, must have left it in my locker." He turned to leave the common room and Eve looked at Marian in horror.

"He'll catch them!" Eve hissed.

"Robin deserves it," Marian muttered.

"And so does Guy! Come on, we need to warn them."

"Fine," Marian conceded, standing up. "I'll stall him, you go and warn the guys."

Hurrying out of the common room Marian saw Guy walking up the steps towards the sports block. "Guy! Wait!" she called, running up behind him. Swallowing her pride she started to apologise for the events of the previous day, doing her best to delay him.

Meanwhile Eve dashed for the nearest door, running through the assembly hall and up a flight of stairs. The indoor way to the sports block was the longest way, but she couldn't have walked past Guy to get there. She just prayed she got there before him.

Running into the sports block she sped round a corner to the corridor where the lockers were. The gang were gathered in a huddle around Roy, who was shoving something into a locker. "Guy's coming!" she gasped, as they all turned to look at the red faced girl in surprise. "Quickly!"

Cursing, Roy slammed the locker door shut and Will quickly fixed the padlock back in place. Eve looked behind herself in horror as she heard the main door to the block open, and realised that Guy was coming in. She ran down the corridor to join the guys and as one they rushed further down the corridor and round a corner. Luckily, the door to the gym was unlocked and they dove into it to hide.

After a couple of minutes Allan sneaked out and then whistled to let them know the coast was clear. They rushed out of the sports block and a worried looking Marian appeared from behind a tree.

"Did he catch you?" she asked.

"Of course not," Robin replied arrogantly.

"Robin, you are unbelievable!" Marian glared at him. "He only didn't catch you because me and Eve came to warn you!"

"That must mean you like me at least a little bit," Robin teased. In response Marian turned and walked off, Eve running after her.

"I think you need to learn to quit while you're ahead, mate," Allan said with a laugh.

* * *

**Author's Note:** So, our gang is gathering! Yay! I am so enjoying writing this story. And I'd glad it seems like you lot are enjoying reading it, thank you so much for the nice reviews!

Oh, and if anyone doesn't know what "peanutting" is, its this thing people used to do at school cos everyone wore ties as part of their school uniform. Basically you grab the long part of the tie and yank it really hard, it tightens the knot and if you do it hard enough its almost impossible to undo! Not that I did it...ever...!


	4. Where's your sense of adventure

**Chapter 4: Where's your sense of adventure**

Marian stared at herself in the mirror. In her eyes, she had suddenly turned back into a thirteen year old; the school uniform made her look like a child again. She had worn a skirt instead of trousers to try and make it more feminine, but the white cotton shirt was shapeless and the tie a hideous shade of green, striped with white and red. The only good thing was that she didn't have to wear a bottle green blazer; only the two lowest years had to wear that. Everyone else could wear a sweatshirt that admittedly was the same horrible green, but was a lot more comfortable.

When she met Eve at the end of the road her friend looked similarly fed up. "I would have gone to the college if I'd known we'd have to wear this again," she muttered as her and Marian set off for the school.

After Mr. Little took the register he directed the students to the assembly hall. Once all the sixth formers were seated Mr. Vaysey stepped out onto the stage and smiled unctuously down at them all.

"Well well, don't we all look smart in our uniforms!" he said, his voice managing to be both patronising and sarcastic. "Its nice to see things are changing around here. But trust me, I haven't finished yet." He scanned the room, smirking. "Now I know you're used to having your little sixth form committee that you can complain to, so they can complain to me. But no more! Do you really think I'm interested in all your silly little grievances? A clue! No."

Marian turned to look at Eve, whose look of discomfort mirrored her own. There was something sinister about this new teacher; he seemed to take pleasure in taunting them. The sound of a chair being pushed back echoed through the hall and without turning round Marian knew it would be Robin standing up.

"Does that mean you're abolishing the committee?" His voice rang out.

"Oh, well done, a proper Stephen Hawking in the making," Mr. Vaysey mocked as he applauded sarcastically.

"What about the right to free speech? If something goes wrong, and we can't talk to you about it, how do we fix it?"

"You don't," Mr. Vaysey returned.

"Oh, very witty," Robin drawled, mocking the slow, sarcastic clapping of the head of year.

"Congratulations, Mr. Locksley. Your second detention in as many weeks. Today, after school." Mr. Vaysey turned back to the rest of the students. "Now, run along children."

The assembled sixth formers stood up, grumbling amongst themselves. Marian felt a pang of sympathy for Robin at the injustice of the punishment, but it soon disappeared when she looked at him and found the same arrogant smirk on his face.

"That was so unnecessary!" Eve said to her. "I can't believe he got detention."

"He brings it on himself," Marian replied.

**XX**

As Eve and Marian walked into the common room that lunchtime Guy waved them over eagerly.

"Shit!" Marian gasped, turning to Eve. "I completely forgot, he thinks we're friends again because I was talking to him on Friday! But that was only because I was trying to distract him. I still hate him."

Eve shrugged. "So let's sit somewhere else."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive," Eve laughed. "Trust me, I'm sick to death of that crowd. I'd rather it just be the two of us." She looked hopefully at Marian. "Or we could sit with Much…"

"Robin's over there though," Marian replied.

"So what? The rest of them seem alright. And seriously, how much would it piss Guy off to see you sitting with Robin?"

A grin slowly spread across Marian's face. "True," she said. "Alright, you win." Turning to the left she led Eve to the back of the room, where Robin was holding court in the group of lads gathered around him. "Mind if we sit here?" she asked him.

Robin raised an eyebrow at her. "Oh, you're talking to me now?"

"Look, I'm not going to beg," Marian snapped, her patience already wearing thin. "Can we sit here or not?"

"Of course you can," Much jumped in, smiling at Eve. The two girls sank down onto a sofa.

Allan cast an appreciative look at Marian then shrugged apologetically at Robin when he glared at him. He turned his gaze to Eve but found her already deep in conversation with Much. Sighing he collapsed back into his arm chair.

"We were just talking about Vaysey," Robin filled them in.

"Wish your dad was still here," Allan chimed in.

"Me too," Marian replied with a sad smile. "Vaysey is such an idiot, and all these new rules…I thought sixth form was going to be fun."

"He's just a control freak," Will said quietly. "Getting rid of the committee takes away our voice, now he can do whatever he likes without us taking a stand."

"No he can't!" Robin insisted.

"I hate that look," Much muttered. "First Gisborne, now Vaysey…you can't fix everything Robin."

"But we can try!" Robin looked round at his friends. "Who says we have to lie down and take this? It's _our_ sixth form, _our_ lives! And I refuse to tolerate some sadistic dictator walking in here and taking over."

Will was nodding slowly, contemplating the truth behind Robin's words. Marian was staring in surprise at the boy she had known somehow turning into the champion of the common man. Eve looked impressed, whilst Much seemed fed up; he was used to Robin's crusades against injustice. Allan looked relatively unmoved by his speech, whilst Roy looked downright incredulous.

"Not being funny, but how the hell are we meant to stop him?" Allan asked.

"Seriously Robin, you're being thick, what are we meant to do? All this 'take a stand' business is crap, we're just kids to them, they aren't going to listen to us," Roy added.

"Exactly! They aren't going to listen to us, so we have to _do_ something!" Robin insisted.

"Maybe we could just finish our lunch in peace?" Much requested, waving an apple in the air to illustrate his point. Robin opened his mouth to object but caught the warning look in Much's eye and for once kept quiet.

**XX**

As the week went on it seemed that every day heralded a new rule, as Mr. Vaysey stamped his authority upon the sixth form. He was haphazard in his manner, seemingly plucking new law from thin air every time he was in a bad mood, or every time someone annoyed him.

On Thursday lunchtime the gang sat in the common room in what had become their usual spot, bemoaning the announcement that had been made in registration that morning. They had been told on Tuesday that students could no longer leave the school grounds at break or lunchtimes, which meant they could neither go home for lunch, nor to the local sandwich or chip shops. The outrage at that restriction on independence had been fierce, but that morning it had been made ten times worse.

The registration tutors had reluctantly informed their students that the price of school dinners had been increased dramatically. Now, if students didn't want to bring their own packed lunch, their only option was to pay the enlarged school prices.

"We should buy a burger van," Allan half-joked. "Park it just outside the school gate, we'd make a fortune."

The others laughed, but Robin looked thoughtful. "You know, there could be something in that."

"I was joking," Allan told him.

"I know!" Robin replied, tossing a cushion at him. "Seriously though, if we could set up some kind of tuck shop…we could sell stuff at value, not for a profit."

"What's the point in that?" Allan scoffed. "Not making a profit?"

"That's what we're making a stand against!" Robin reached out for another missile but couldn't find anything. "Prince and Vaysey, they're taking advantage of the students. That's not right, and we can't take advantage of them either!"

"If we had a sixth form committee we could tell them what we think," Will said quietly.

"Maybe we should tell them anyway," Robin returned.

"What, and get _another_ detention?" Marian asked him sarcastically. "That would really help."

The two were staring at each other across the small circle, Robin smirking, Marian glaring.

"My cousin offered me an apprenticeship as a plumber," Roy said suddenly, round a mouthful of sandwich. "I'm thinking of taking it." Everyone turned slowly to look at him, startled by the sudden change in topic, and he shrugged. "Sorry, didn't know quite how to bring it up."

"What, and drop out of school?" Allan asked.

"Yeah, I didn't want to come here in the first place, and all these new rules…they're total bull shit. I really can't be arsed."

"See!" Robin was really getting into the swing of his motivational speech. "Prince and Vaysey are already driving students out of the school, I bet Roy won't be the last."

"Robin, shut up about Prince and Vaysey!" Marian snapped. "This is about Roy." She looked at him, concerned. "Are you sure? It's a big decision."

He nodded. "I never wanted to do A Levels, my mum made me. She understands though, I've talked to her about it. I think tomorrow is going to be my last day."

"One last stand before you go?" Robin asked, a mischievous smile quirking his lips.

Roy smirked back at him. "What did you have in mind?"

**XX**

The following lunchtime, instead of gathering in the common room, the gang all met in a sheltered corner of the courtyard.

"I'm not sure about this," Marian fretted, worrying her bottom lip with her teeth.

"Come on Major, where's your sense of adventure?" Robin gave her a reckless grin. "You always used to like taking risks."

"I used to be too timid to stand up to you when you came up with one of your idiotic schemes! Now I don't mind telling you that you're being stupid," she retorted.

"Coward."

"I am not a coward!" Marian snapped. "Fine, I'll do it."

Robin grinned at her whilst she studiously avoided his eyes, angry at herself for giving in so easily. She knew he was manipulating her.

As the small group of rebels set off Eve dropped back, tugging at Marian's sleeve. "Why does he call you that?" she whispered.

"Long story," Marian whispered back.

Students weren't meant to be in the school buildings during lunchtime, so the group had to sneak in before tiptoeing up the stairs that led to Mr. Vaysey's office. Having learned their lesson from the near-disaster the previous week, they posted Allan as a lookout at the bottom of the stairs. They knew that his quick tongue would delay any teacher that should happen along.

The office was locked but Will had his paper clip again. He worked it in the lock but wasn't rewarded with the satisfying click of the lock snapping open. "It won't work!" he whispered urgently, looking up at the gang gathered behind him.

Marian reached up to her hair and pulled out a grip. "Here, try this," she suggested, offering it to him.

Will inserted the new tool into the lock and after a few tense seconds the lock clicked.

"Nice work!" Robin whispered to Marian, who smiled smugly.

The gang filed into the office, Robin pulling a thick stack of post-it notes from his bag. Earlier that day they had all taken a pile and filled them with complaints about the new rules and regulations that had been imposed. He divided the pile between the six of them and they quickly papered the office with them, sticking them all over the desk, the chair, the shelves, the cupboards.

Once they had finished presenting their complaints Roy pulled a small tin of sardines from his bag. He had decided that their plan was too soft, and grinned at the lads as he went to carry out his own final stand against Mr. Vaysey. With a pair of scissors he snipped a small hole in the lining of the curtain at the window and opened the tin, shoving the small fish into the hole. As the fish rotted the smell would fill the office.

"Pssst!" A fierce hiss from Allan sounded up the stairs before he bounded up them, two at a time. "Vayey's coming," he said urgently. "Prince is with him!"

Panicking, the gang withdrew from the office, Will flicking the catch down so the door would lock when they closed it. "Come on!" Robin urged, starting down the stairs, but Allan caught hold of his hood.

"They're too close!" he whispered. "Come on, this way."

He led them back past Mr. Vaysey's office, into a classroom. Several rooms linked together, but Allan knew that at the back was a staircase that was intended as a fire escape route. The group sped up as they heard a roar behind them, knowing that Mr. Vaysey had found his vandalised office, almost toppling desks in their haste.

They made it to the last classroom and Allan went to slam through the door to the staircase, but came to a stop with a jolt. "Bugger, it's locked!"

"Damn it!" Robin cursed, thumping a fist against the door.

The group looked round in horror as they heard footsteps thudding towards them. Roy made a dash for the classroom door and slammed it closed, leaning against it to keep the teachers out. Allan and Robin joined him, lending their weight, whilst Will pulled out the hair grip and slipped it into the lock on the door to the fire escape.

After a few frantic seconds the door clicked open. Heaving sighs of relief the gang made for the door; all except Roy. He stayed where he was, holding the door and stopping the teachers.

"Go!" he urged his friends. "I'll hold them off."

"Don't be stupid," Robin replied. "Come on!"

"Damn it Robin, just leg it!" Roy hissed at him.

"I'm not letting you take the flak," Robin insisted.

"Look, I'm dropping out anyway," Roy whispered. "Might as well go out in style, ey?" He winked at his friends, who all looked back at him, doubt etched on their faces.

Robin worried his lower lip with his teeth, divided between protecting the rest of the gang by running off and protecting Roy by taking his share of the blame. "Roy…"

"Honest, Robin. School ain't for me, right? At least this way I'll be remembered." He gave him a confident grin. "Just scarper."

With one last look at Roy, Robin turned away. "Come on guys," he said to the rest of the gang, and they hurried into the stairwell and down the stairs to freedom.

**XX**

Roy called Robin that night with the inevitable news that he had been expelled. Robin felt numb as he threw his mobile down on the bed, his guilt at letting Roy take the blame blurring with the guilt at being relieved that he hadn't been caught himself.

Robin sank down onto the bed, his head in his hands. He needed to talk to someone, but he could hear Much humming to himself in the shower.

If he was honest with himself, he knew that it wasn't really Much he wanted to talk to. He wasn't sure how, but he knew that he needed Marian. Even though they had been children the last time they knew each other, without many cares in the world, Marian had always been there for him. When Robin had been unsure about another boy moving into his house and sharing his parents, even though that boy had been Much, it was Marian he had turned to.

Decision made, Robin stood up and dragged a hoody over his head, running a hand through his tousled hair. Sliding his phone into his jeans pocket he ran downstairs, shoving his feet into a pair of trainers. "I'll be back in half an hour!" he shouted to his mum before running out of the house.

Marian only lived a few streets away and he was soon outside her front door, ringing the doorbell. He was slightly nervous – he knew that Marian had been annoyed at him ever since he returned, and wasn't sure why. Well, he knew that he'd been antagonising her, but he didn't know why she'd been upset from the first moment he'd walked into the assembly hall.

He heard the patter of feet on the other side of the door and then it swung open, revealing Marian. She looked startled to see him. "Hi," she said automatically, looking at him quizzically.

"Hi," he returned, and gave her a rueful smile. "I need you."

"Oh, you do?" she replied, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah. Roy…Roy's been expelled."

Marian sighed. "It's a shame, Robin. But it was to be expected."

"I know, and I know it was what he wanted, I just…" He stumbled, not knowing how to confess his guilt. "Look, can we go somewhere and talk?"

Marian eyed him appraisingly for a moment then sighed. "Fine. Let me get a jacket."

She disappeared into the house for a moment then returned wearing shoes and a jacket. They fell into step and without saying anything turned and walked towards the play park at the end of the street. They had always played there as children.

The playground was deserted and Marian sat on a swing, the chains creaking softly in the still night air. Robin mirrored her choice of seat, sinking onto the swing next to hers.

"So…what did you want to talk about?" Marian asked, finally breaking the silence.

"I was just feeling guilty," Robin said quietly. "It was my idea to break into the office, my idea to take a stand against Vaysey. If we hadn't then Roy would never have been expelled."

"Robin, we haven't known Roy very long but I think it's obvious that he would rather leave school as a hero for standing up to Vaysey than slide away quietly."

Robin sighed. "I guess so. It's just…" he faltered and Marian, sensing that he really needed to get something off his chest, reached out and squeezed his hand gently. Robin looked up at her, meeting her sympathetic blue eyes, and knew he could trust her not to scoff at him. "I feel guilty because I feel so relieved," he admitted. "I'm relieved that I didn't get caught."

Marian gave a gentle laugh. "Well if that's all that's bothering you, you're fine! I feel the same Robin, it's only natural. It's a shame that Roy got caught but he wanted it that way, he wanted to sacrifice himself for us. And we've learnt a lesson now."

"We have?"

"Yes. If we want to stand up to Vaysey, we need to be cleverer about it," she replied matter-of-factly.

Robin quirked an eyebrow at her. "You don't want to stop the rebellion?"

"I did until this afternoon," Marian admitted. "I didn't see much point in trying to make a stand. What good can six sixth formers do against the head teacher and the head of year? But I'm starting to realise that we need to. We can't just stand by and let it happen."

A smile spread across Robin's face. "There's the Major I knew."

"Will you stop calling me that?" she snapped, their unspoken truce dissipating into the still night air. "That was a long time ago."

"I know, but I'm back now, and I don't see why we can't be friends again!" he replied defensively.

Marian stared at him and shook her head. "You've got a cheek, Robin Locksley," she told him before standing up to leave.

"For God's sake Marian, will you tell me what I'm supposed to have done?" Robin exploded.

Marian whirled around, her eyes flashing. "You want to know what you've done? Well, in case you've forgotten, we were best friends our whole lives! And then you just upped and left, and forgot all about me!"

Robin was staring at her in disbelief. "You think I forgot about you?"

"Yes! All those letters I sent, all those parcels, all of them unanswered."

"What? It was _me_ that sent letters, and _you_ that ignored them!" Robin, watching her reaction, saw her shock and knew that it must have mirrored his own.

"I never got any letters," she said quietly.

"Neither did I," he replied. "I could never forget you, Major."

She allowed herself a slight smile. "I don't understand though, I know I had your address right."

"And I knew your address better than my own," Robin agreed. He scratched at his head, then his face slowly stiffened. "I think I might know what happened. My parents had to collect our mail from the post office; they must not have given it to me."

"But why would they do that?" Marian asked, bewildered. "I thought your parents liked me."

"They did," Robin assured her. "And I thought your dad liked me, but he must not have given you my letters either."

"He wouldn't do that," Marian said immediately.

Robin shrugged. "It's the only explanation. I'm going to go home and ask my parents. Will you asked your dad?"

"I guess," she said uncertainly.

"Here, let me give you my number, call me when you've talked to him." The two exchanged numbers before splitting up and going their separate ways.

Marian hurried home, her mind whirling crazily. She couldn't even begin to suspect her dad of doing something as cruel as hide her mail, but there was a nagging doubt at the back of her mind. It seemed like the only explanation.

Letting herself into the house Marian walked into the living room, where her father was sitting watching television. "Dad, I need to ask you something," she said abruptly.

Edward turned round, looking at her with concern. "Of course. Anything."

"Did you hide the letters that Robin sent me when he moved away?" she asked bluntly.

Edward stared at her for a long minute. "How did you find out about that?" he asked quietly.

Marian sagged backwards, almost falling into an armchair. "I can't believe it," she said, almost to herself.

"I thought it was for the best," he explained. "You were only eleven, you were too young to be pining after a boy. I thought it would be easier for you to cope if you didn't stay in contact with him."

"He wasn't just a boy, he was my best friend!" Marian cried, unwanted tears springing to her eyes. "It wasn't your decision to make."

"I promise you, Marian, I was trying to do what was best for you." He was looking at her sincerely and Marian, despite the ball of anger nestling in her stomach, knew that his words were the truth.

"Do you still have the letters?" she asked.

Edward nodded and stood up. He led her upstairs to his study, where he unlocked a drawer in his desk and fished out a bundle of letters. Marian took them from him, lightly brushing her fingertips over the ink stained paper. She felt a pang of nostalgia as she read her name and address written in Robin's sprawling, untidy handwriting.

Without saying another word to her father she retreated to her bedroom, settling herself cross-legged on the bed and slowly untying the bundle of letters. She opened the oldest envelope and tears instantly filled her eyes as she read the opening line.

_Hey, Major. I miss you so much already I can't even tell you._

After reading through the first couple of letters Marian picked up her phone and called Robin.

"You were right," she said in greeting once he answered the phone. "My dad hid your letters."

"My parents did the same," he replied. "Thought they were doing the best for me."

"So did dad." The two fell silent for a moment. "Listen, Robin, I'm sorry I've been such a bitch since you got back. I thought you'd gone away and forgotten all about out friendship, I was furious that you came back and pretended it never happened."

"I understand," Robin replied. "Friends?"

Marian smiled into the phone. "Friends."

* * *

**Author's Note:** So, Robin and Marian have finally started talking! Yay! And I'm afraid that is the end of Roy in this story; I'm glad people were pleased that I included him, but I decided to write him out like they did in the show. Well, obviously, not exactly like they did in the show, as he isn't dead.

I am getting so excited about the next chapter - now Roy is gone, you all know who is coming! Djaq! Which means I get to start writing Will/Djaq goodness.

In the next chapter there is a small amount of discussion about Will and Allan being rather handsome. This is something that has been on my mind recently! Originally I was a total Will lover, and I still am really...but as I've been watching series 1 again I can't quite get over how beautiful Allan is. Which do people prefer?

Oh, and thank you for the reviews! Keep pressing that little blue button :)


	5. Are you following me

**Chapter 5: Are you following me**

Will Scarlett was a boy used to being invisible. He had spent the past five years learning the best techniques to stay out of the spotlight, and he was very good at it. Sitting in his Chemistry class on Monday morning he wouldn't have been surprised if someone had tried to sit on his stool, not realising that it was already occupied.

Hunching his slender shoulders he leant over his desk, doodling in his homework planner. To Will it was a doodle; to anyone else it would have been a skilled sketch, his long fingers effortlessly guiding his pencil across the page.

He didn't look up when the door opened, but the whisper of "New girl!" that rushed through the students behind him made him glance up briefly. There was a clatter as his pencil dropped from his hand onto the desk, and his cheeks flushed at he unintentionally drew attention to himself.

The girl was beautiful. Unlike any girl he'd ever seen before. A confusing rush of thoughts whirled through his mind as a hoard of butterflies he hadn't realised he'd been harbouring took flight in his stomach. She was small, slight; Will was taller than a lot of people, but he knew he'd tower over her. Her skin was caramel, her eyes melted chocolate, and her dark hair short and tufting around her head in slight curls.

The teacher was talking, asking the girl to introduce herself. The newcomer fidgeted awkwardly as she spoke softly, Will not catching her name as he stared at her. She looked as uncomfortable as he would have been had he been put on the spot in front of a class full of teenagers.

The teacher thanked her and asked her to take a seat, the girl scurrying thankfully to the desk in front of Will's. For perhaps the first time ever Will didn't pay attention to a single word the teacher said, choosing instead to spend the lesson staring at the soft dark hair that curled over the new girl's collar.

**XX**

"See you later," Marian called to Will and Much as she ducked into her French classroom. Much was next to split off, slipping through a side door into the courtyard to go to his Geography lesson. Will continued alone down the corridor, through the door into the Science block and up three flights of stairs to his Physics classroom.

There were a couple of people already in the room and as he gave it a perfunctory scan he almost stumbled over his own feet as he realised the new girl was sitting near the front. Wishing his ears didn't turn bright red the second he got embarrassed he sat down a couple of rows behind her, and for the second time that day he spent an hour watching the back of someone's head. His fingers itched to pick up his pencil and guide it over the page of his notebook, to sketch out the lines of her hair as it twisted around her collar and the soft curvature of her neck, but he managed to resist.

As the bell rang he gathered his books and left the room a few people behind the girl, hurrying across the school to get to his Maths room. As he entered he faltered once more; the mysterious girl was in this class too. And, horribly, the only empty seat was next to her. He sank into his chair, pulling his textbook from his bag.

"Are you following me?"

He looked up and realised the girl was speaking to him, amusement in both her eyes and her lilting accent. "Erm…" he replied intelligently.

"You like Science too?" All he could manage was a nod. "Do you take Biology as well?"

"No," he replied, horrified at how dry his throat was and how cracked it made his voice. "Woodwork."

"Interesting," she replied kindly, turning to face the front once more as the teacher entered the room.

_Well done Will_, the boy thought to himself as he kicked himself mentally. _Great first impression there, you stuttering idiot._

Once the class ended he found himself once again following her awkwardly. Desperate to make it look like he wasn't stalking her he ducked into the boy's bathroom, waiting five minutes to make sure the coast was clear before leaving for home.

**XX**

Sitting in registration the following morning, listening to Allan drone on about some football match that had been on telly the previous night, Will was mortified when the new girl walked in. She smiled as she saw him, looking relieved to recognise someone.

"New girl, one o'clock," Allan hissed, sitting up straighter in his seat. He waved to the girl and gestured to the empty desk in front of his and Will's. Smiling gratefully she took the invitation and sank into the seat.

_What's wrong with me?_ Will asked himself as Allan confidently introduced himself to the girl. _Why couldn't I say hello and ask her to sit with us?_

"I'm Djaq," the girl introduced herself, shaking Allan's hand.

"Jack?" Allan and Will said together and she laughed.

"Not in the way you English say it," she told them, spelling out the name.

"This is Will," Allan introduced his friend, realising that he wasn't about to volunteer the information himself.

"We already met," Djaq smiled. "Well, sort of." Will's only response was a deeper blush.

"You weren't in reg yesterday were you?" Allan asked.

"No, I had to meet the head teacher."

"What did you think?" he asked.

"Idiot," she declared succinctly and Allan and Will both laughed.

The bell rang to signify the end of registration and Allan stood with a sigh, running a hand through his tousled hair. "Time for Psych," he announced, shoving his pen in his pocket. "Pile of crap. You got class?"

"No, I'm free," Djaq replied.

Allan clapped Will on the shoulder. "You'll take care of Djaq for me won't you mate? Show her the common room?" Without waiting for an answer he winked at Djaq and left the classroom.

Will's fists clenched with an anger he'd never felt and an unknown monster awoke in his heart and growled with jealousy as he saw Djaq's eyes follow his athletic friend out of the room. He stuck his hands in his pockets and shuffled his feet nervously as Djaq looked up at him expectantly.

"Erm, do you want me to show you the common room?" he asked.

"That'd be nice," she replied with a smile, secretly relieved that the quiet boy could actually string more than two words together.

They left the room and walked towards the common room in silence, Will desperately searching his mind for something funny or intelligent to say. As they entered the sixth form block he automatically turned to the left, hoping to find someone else there to bounce conversation off, but with an internal groan he remembered that the rest of the gang all had class that period.

He settled awkwardly into an armchair and gestured for Djaq to follow suit.

She sat down, watching the quiet boy expectantly. She was intrigued by him; if anyone else was silent in her presence for so long she would assume they were being rude, but she could tell that Will was not that kind of boy. He was shy, painfully so, that much was obvious. She was determined to try and urge him out of his shell.

"Where are you from?" Will blurted suddenly and she smiled to herself, pleased that he was finally making an effort at conversation. As they began chatting she noticed him physically relax, unwinding into the comfort of the chair.

Will was surprised how easy it actually was to talk to her. The only people he'd ever been able to chat easily to were his family and Allan, but something about the warmth in her eyes and her gentle laugh encouraged him to loosen his tongue.

The bell ringing to signify the end of first period startled both of them. Will dragged himself out of his chair, stretching his long limbs and picking up his bag. "I have to go to Woodwork," he offered apologetically.

Djaq smiled and stood up too. "I have Biology," she said, and they both laughed. "Looks like our timetables are identical."

"What are you doing at break?" Will asked. She shrugged. "What did you do yesterday?"

"Read. In the library."

Will was impressed that she showed no embarrassment at admitting she had spent her free time reading in the dreaded library. He would have mumbled some excuse, not wanting people to think he was a geek; she seemed quite proud to be studious. "Well, you can always come in here…I mean, if you want…the rest of the gang will be here, you can meet them."

Djaq smiled again, a broad, genuine smile. "That'd be great," she told him, as she picked up her own bag.

**XX**

The introductions at break time went well; Djaq seemed to get on really well with Marian and Eve. She joined them in the common room at lunch time as well, soon talking and joking with all of them.

As the bell rang to signal the end of the lunch break Marian, Eve and Robin got up to head off to their History class. Much followed, going to Food Tech. Djaq looked at Will.

"Are you free?" she asked.

"Yeah but I have to go work on my Woodwork project," he said apologetically. What he didn't say was that he'd hardly done anything in class that morning because he'd been too busy thinking about Djaq to be trusted with operating dangerous tools.

"You can walk me to Drama class first then," Allan said with a grin, slinging his bag over his body.

"See you in Physics?" Will said to Djaq. She nodded with a smile and he followed Allan out of the room.

"She's cute," Allan commented as they walked through the courtyard. "Funny, too." Will made a noncommittal noise. "I might see if she's free on Friday night." Allan cast a sideways glance at Will, who was steadfastly staring straight ahead. "What do you think about that?"

Will shrugged, doing his best to appear nonchalant, where inside he had a sudden urge to give Allan a decent thump. "Great," he muttered.

Allan started to laugh. "Did your mum never tell you that if you don't ask, you don't get?"

Will raised an eyebrow at him. "What are you talking about?"

"Djaq!" Allan replied. "I know you like her, I'm only trying to get you to admit it! If you don't turn round and say 'hold on mate, I like her too' then you're never going to get anywhere are you?"

Will stopped and turned to him. "So you don't like her?"

Allan shrugged. "Well yeah, a bit, but if you like her…I'll back off. Go for it mate."

"I don't think I'm very good at 'going for it'" Will replied nervously.

Allan was proud at himself for managing not to laugh at his friend, as although it would have been a loving laugh he didn't think Will would appreciate it. "It'll be fine. Just…blind her with your scientific knowledge."

Will elbowed him. "Thanks for the help," he muttered sarcastically.

"Glad to be of service," Allan returned, tipping him a wink before jogging off.

**XX**

Djaq closed her Biology book with a sigh. She had intended to read the chapter that had been set for homework but after reading the same sentence seven times she had come to the conclusion that it was pointless.

If truth be told, she kept getting distracted by the image of a serious young man that seemed to form on the page in front of her. Will Scarlett was a puzzling character; in some ways he seemed so open, but at the same time he was so calm and quiet that he was a bit of an enigma. She couldn't wait to get to know him better.

However, the image of Will seemed to be battling for precedence with the image of a slightly shorter, blonder man. Allan A Dale jostled his way into her thoughts, with his impish dimples and flashing blue eyes.

They were like two sides of the same coin. She could already tell that they were incredibly close, close enough to be brothers in all but blood. And yet they were so different; one quiet, sensible, trustworthy, the other bold, mischievous, and sarcastic.

They were both so good looking, but in very different ways; Will was cute, adorable, a bit like a sweet little puppy. Allan on the other hand was handsome, roguish,

They both had beautiful smiles, but again they were so different; Will's full of a childish delight, Allan's devilish and cheeky.

It didn't matter anyway. They were both her friends now. Not that she would have been able to do anything about it even if she had wanted to.

Shaking her head as if to clear the thoughts from her mind she looked up and saw Marian and Eve walking towards her.

"History was cancelled," Marian declared happily, collapsing into an armchair. "Robin gets to go home the lucky thing, he doesn't have fifth period."

"At least you get to relax this period," Djaq replied. "I'm glad you're here, I can't concentrate on this work."

"Well we are here to entertain you," Eve told her, kicking off her shoes so she could sit cross-legged.

"What, are you going to sing and dance for me?" Djaq teased.

"Entertainment to Eve is usually talking about boys," Marian said with a laugh.

"Ha ha." Eve threw a cushion at her. "Now we're on the topic though, what's going on with Robin? You two are actually being civil with each other today."

"We talked," Marian replied. "We're friends now, I guess."

"Friends?" Eve said teasingly.

"Yes! You know, boys and girls can just be friends," she replied defensively. Seeing Djaq's confused face she quickly explained. "We were best friends when we were younger but he moved away. He came back for sixth form and things have been a bit…strained. But we're all good now."

"If I'm honest, Marian, you seemed to be flirting with him earlier," Djaq said slowly, and Eve laughed delightedly.

"See! You two bicker like an old married couple," she teased.

Marian turned to her friend, a mischievous smile on her face. "Oh, you want to talk about boys, Eve? How about Much?" She was rewarded by a rich pink blush spreading across Eve's freckled cheeks.

"Much is…cute," she said, before quickly turning the attention away from herself. "How about you, Djaq? Anyone caught your eye yet?"

Djaq shook her head, but she was sure that her cheeks were tinged with pink, and Marian quickly picked up on it.

"She's blushing! Come on Djaq, spill the beans."

"Is it Will?" Eve asked eagerly. "Or Allan? He's so hot!"

"Mmm," Marian concurred with a nod.

Djaq looked at them both in shock. "What about Robin? And Much?"

"Just because I like Much doesn't mean I don't notice how sexy Allan is," Eve replied with a laugh, and Marian nodded her agreement again.

"I guess I'm just not used to being around boys," Djaq explained with a shrug. "Back at home, it's not really encouraged. And sure, Will and Allan are cute, but it doesn't matter. My parents want me to marry a nice Muslim boy."

"Ohhh," Eve and Marian both said in recognition.

"So you wouldn't be able to date either of them?" Marian asked.

"Not if I wanted to respect my parents," she replied as the bell rang.

Walking into the Physics classroom Djaq saw Will sitting by the window and walked over, dropping into the seat beside him. As the teacher walked into the room she felt him arm move and, looking down, saw his long fingers sliding over a scrap of paper torn from his notebook.

Sketched on the paper was a caricature of their Physics teacher with a speech bubble coming out of his mouth declaring "Shut up and listen!" As she chuckled softly the teacher banged a fist on the table and roared the words written on the paper. It was his favourite catch phrase.

Picking up a pen she scribbled the words _Nice work_ on the paper and pushed it back towards Will.

She might not be able to date him, but he would certainly make Science lessons more interesting.

* * *

**Author's Note:** EEEE Djaq is here! I don't know why I'm so excited about this, seeing as I control when the characters appear, but oh well. Will and Djaq cuteness...squee!

Also, that thing about the Physics teacher...that was what my Physics teacher used to do, it was so funny. About twenty times a lesson he'd just roar "shut up and listen!" at us. Even if we weren't talking.

Also, continuing my ramblings on my newfound love for Allan, I was quite distraught to realise that he's the only main character without a character profile on the DVD boxset. Hmph.

Just a warning, updates probably won't be as frequent now unfortunately because my first exam is on Tuesday :( and exam period is going to be a bit crazy! But I'll do my best to get a couple of chapters up in the next week or two.

Thank you for all the wonderful revews!!


	6. I don’t want it infected

**Chapter 6: I don't want it infected by a greasy haired muppet**

"It's my birthday on Friday," Robin announced to the gang a couple of weeks later as they lounged in the common room.

"And you'll cry if you want to?" Marian teased.

"Oh ha ha," he replied, pulling a face at her.

"Well, what do you want, a medal?" Allan continued the jibing.

Robin sank back into his chair, folding his arms across his chest with a mock pout. "I was _going_ to invite you to a party, but you can sod off now."

"A party?" Allan's ears perked up. "Awesome! When?"

"Next weekend," Robin replied. "A week on Saturday. It's my birthday on Friday and Much's two weeks on Friday, so we're celebrating in the middle."

"What kind of party is it?" Allan asked. "Dancing, booze, girls?"

"No, I was thinking pass the parcel and musical chairs," Robin replied sarcastically.

"I don't mean to be rude," Marian began, in a tone that suggested that she was going to be rude and yet didn't care. "But you don't have any friends to invite to a party. Except us."

Robin shrugged. "So what? I'll just invite everyone. Except Gisborne, obviously. It's going to be a rager, are you up for it? Do you think you can handle it, Major?"

She glared at him. "Of course I can. But can you handle your parents grounding you for the next century because you've trashed their house?"

"My parents are going away. And what they don't know won't hurt them."

Marian gave him a withering look. "On your head be it."

**XX**

After lunch Robin and Allan shouldered their kit bags and headed for the sports block, quickly changing into their PE kits. Allan started to stretch and warm up as Robin tightened the laces on his football boots.

"Damn it, my lace snapped," Robin groaned, holding up the offending lace. "You go ahead, I'll be out in a minute."

Allan nodded and jogged out of the changing room, heading for the football pitch. Robin unlaced one of his trainers and bent over his football boot, beginning to thread the borrowed lace through the eyeholes. Behind him he heard the clatter of football studs against the tiled floor as the rest of the lads left the changing room.

Pulling the boot on and tying the lace Robin stamped it on the floor a couple of times, wriggling his foot to test the hold. Satisfied he turned around, expecting to find the room empty, but with a start found himself face to face with Guy Gisborne.

Recovering quickly he plastered a smirk on his face, with the sole intention of irritating Guy as much as possible. "Need something, Gisborne?"

"I hear you're having a party next week," he replied.

Robin raised his eyebrow, impressed at how fast the word had spread. He was glad it had reached Guy's ears – now he got the pleasure of telling him that he wasn't welcome at a party that would be attended by the rest of the sixth form. "You after an invitation?" he asked.

Guy shrugged. "Didn't think I needed one. Everyone's saying it's just an open house."

"Yes, but you see, my house is never open to you. I don't want it infected by a greasy haired muppet."

Guy's eyes narrowed and his lip raised in a snarl. "As if I'd want to step within ten feet of your house, Locksley." He turned to leave and then paused, looking at Robin over his shoulder. "But you will regret saying that, I can promise you."

Robin laughed openly. "I'm shaking, Gisborne. Terrified," he mocked.

"Just you wait," Guy hissed. "You'll get what's coming to you."

**XX**

On Friday morning only Robin and Allan were free first period, but the others had all agreed to skip their classes to throw Robin a mini birthday party in the common room. Guy sneered from the other end of the room as Marian produced a helium balloon, and the others pulled presents out of their bags.

"Sweet!" Robin crowed as he opened his present from Allan and found the CD he had wanted. "Thanks, mate."

Allan shrugged. "No worries."

"Mine next, mine next!" Much chirruped impatiently, waving his own messily wrapped gift in the air. He passed it to Robin who ripped the paper off eagerly, his expectant expression fading as he held up the scarf that the package had contained. It was made of various gaudy fabrics stitched haphazardly together.

"Er…thank you?" Robin offered weakly and Much rolled his eyes.

"I knew you wouldn't like it," he muttered. "So I got you this." He threw him a second package, which Robin unwrapped to reveal two new games for his games console.

"Here's mine," Will said nervously, handing Robin a wrapped gift and watching anxiously as he opened it. Robin laughed delightedly at the present, a framed sketch of him on the football field proudly holding aloft a trophy whilst a glowering Guy Gisborne skulked in the corner.

"This is brilliant, Will," Robin praised him, showing the picture to the others. Will blushed as they all made impressed noises.

"This is from all of us," Marian said, indicating herself, Djaq and Eve as she handed Robin a small neatly wrapped box. His eyes widened as he opened the box and revealed a smart watch nestled against a velvet cushion.

"This is…"

His gratitude was interrupted by the harsh ring of the fire alarm. With a groan Allan began unfolding himself from the depths of his arm chair, but the others exchanged nervous glances.

"We can't go outside," Marian whispered, their predicament causing her to lower her voice as if unfriendly ears were listening. "We're skipping class, we can't go to the field, the teachers will see us."

Students began streaming past the windows of the common room, heading towards the playing fields where they were supposed to assemble when the fire alarm went off. Teachers mingled amongst the students, and without saying a word the skiving sixth formers slid out of their seats and onto the floor, so they could not be seen through the windows.

Eve clamped her hands over her ears with a groan, wincing as the shrill metallic clanging of the fire alarm continued. "I hate that noise," she muttered.

Robin grinned and stood up, lifting a cushion from the sofa and walking over to where the fire alarm was mounted on the wall. Using a chair to lift him to the right height he wedged the cushion over the alarm, muffling the noise, before swaggering back the group.

"Thanks Rob," Eve said gratefully, removing her hands from her ears.

"It was my pleasure, my lady," Robin replied with a deep bow. "I just wish it was so easy to shut Much up."

"Hey!" Much looked at him, wounded. "Give me those games back, you don't deserve them." He made a grab for the computer games but Robin danced backwards out of his reach, the games in his hands. Marian shrieked as Much tripped over her legs, and soon an all-out play fight had erupted.

**XX**

Later that morning Marian and Eve were gossiping excitedly about Robin and Much's party as they clattered down the steps outside the head teacher's office on their way to the common room.

"Look," Eve whispered, nudging Marian and interrupting her ramble about what she should wear. She pointed up to the balcony over the stairs where the offices were, and Marian looked up to see Guy emerging from the head teacher's office, shaking his fringe out of his eyes.

"What was he doing up there?" Marian asked suspiciously.

"No idea," Eve replied. "But I'm betting he's up to no good."

**XX**

Allan was not a fan of showering after he had a PE lesson. He believed that his natural scent was appealing to the ladies, and as he strolled leisurely to the common room for lunch he swung his arms back and forth, wafting pheromones in every direction.

He sent a wink at a shapely blonde who was admiring his legs in their PE shorts before walking into the common room, collapsing onto a sofa and swinging his feet up into Eve's lap. She wrinkled her nose and pushed him off her. "You stink," she muttered.

"Turning you on, is it?" he asked with a wink.

"In your dreams," Eve returned, aware of Much's eyes on her.

"Where's the birthday boy?" Marian asked. "We bought him a cake."

Allan shrugged. "He wasn't in PE, figured he'd be skiving in here." He reached out for the tin that Marian held. "Oh well, more for us."

"Hands off!" Marian snapped, pulling the tin out of his reach and picking up her mobile. She called Robin, frowning into the phone as it rang without being answered.

The lunch hour passed without any sign of Robin. Allan had suggested that perhaps he'd found a girl to give him the birthday bumps, only to be silenced by a deathly glare from Marian.

Everyone dispersed for their next lessons, leaving Djaq and Will helping each other with their Chemistry homework. As Djaq tried to explain a formula to the confused Will, his mobile began vibrating in his pocket.

Apologising, Will fished the phone out of his pocket and inspected the flashing screen. "It's Robin," he said in surprise, pressing the answer button. "Hello? Yeah…where are you? Are you okay? Yeah, two minutes." He hung up and answered Djaq's unspoken question with a shrug. "Wants us to meet him at the school gates."

Intrigued, the two stood and headed towards the assigned meeting place, leaving a pile of notebooks and papers scattered on the table. Reaching the gates they found Robin lounging against the wall, hood pulled up protectively against the breeze.

"What are you doing out here?" Djaq asked, shivering slightly as a gust of autumn wind sent fallen leaves scattering over the pavement.

"Not allowed on school grounds," Robin replied, his voice devoid of its usual humour. "I've been _suspended_." He spat the word out, the lack of bravado in his manner revealing how upset he really was.

"What did you do?!" Will asked, shoving his hands deep into his pockets and hunching his shoulders against the chill air.

"I 'tampered with important safety equipment'" Robin told him mockingly. "Put that bloody cushion over the fire alarm didn't I."

"How did Mr. Prince know about that?" Djaq asked dubiously.

Will groaned, smacking the palm of his hand against his forehead. "Marian saw Guy coming out of Prince's office earlier."

Robin's eyes flashed with anger. "That…" He fought for a word to correctly describe Guy, eventually settling on emitting an angry growl. "If he wants a war, he can have one."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Whoa, I hit such writers block with this story. I think I've finally got it moving again though, and next chapter party time! Whoop whoop!

Thanks as ever for the lovely reviews!!


	7. You’re just a raging bunch of hormones

**Chapter 7: You're just a raging bunch of hormones**

"Party time!" Eve crowed gleefully as Marian opened her front door. Laughing, Marian let Eve and Djaq into her house, the three girls running up the stairs to her bedroom.

Djaq stopped dead in the doorway, one eyebrow rising as she took in the girlish mess scattered across the room. "Did the wardrobe explode?" she asked dryly as she picked her way across the room, trying to avoid stepping on any of the clothes that had been discarded on the floor. Eve, who had no such inhibitions, bounded across the carpet and swept a heap of clothing from the bed, dropping down onto the cleared space.

Marian looked at Djaq sheepishly. "I couldn't decide what to wear," she explained and Djaq started to laugh. "I've narrowed it down to three outfits though!" she protested.

She held up the three selected outfits, and with guidance from the girls eventually settled on a pair of skinny jeans and a green top. She changed swiftly then looked expectantly at Eve.

Eve reached into the tote bag she had brought and pulled out a pair of black tights, a short denim skirt, and a blue top. "I was hoping I could use that glittery blue eyeshadow you bought in the summer?" she asked Marian hopefully, who nodded and began rummaging in a large vanity case, eventually producing the small pot and tossing it to Eve.

"What are you wearing?" Marian asked Djaq, turning to her expectantly.

"Er – this," Djaq said in surprise, indicating her outfit of jeans and simple, short-sleeved top. "Does it look bad?" she asked nervously, looking down at herself.

"No, it's just…" Marian searched for the right words, not wanting to offend her. "I just always think a party is a good excuse to get dressed up."

"I don't really do dressing up," Djaq replied, running a nervous hand through her short hair.

Eve's eyes began to sparkle as she looked from Marian to Djaq, and back to Marian. "You know what this means?" she said mischievously.

"Make over!" Marian announced delightedly, laughing at the look of panic that passed through Djaq's eyes. "Don't look so scared, we're experts."

Nervously, Djaq submitted herself to the so-called experts. Half an hour later she was standing in front of a mirror, staring at herself as if she were a stranger. Moving her hips experimentally from side to side she watched as the flared brown skirt swished around her knees, topped off with a strappy cream top that complimented her skin tone. She blinked her mascara-ed eyes as if expecting the image before her to disappear, and tentatively touched her hair, which had been styled to accentuate the flicks and curls.

"You look fantastic," Eve reassured her. "Will won't be able to take his eyes off you."

Djaq's head snapped round so fast she almost gave herself whiplash. "Will?" she repeated. "What's he got to do with it?"

Eve chuckled. "He hasn't been able to take his eyes off you since you arrived at Oak Tree," she replied.

"It's so cute!" Marian agreed. "He's always been so shy, don't think he's ever had a girlfriend. He's a sweetheart."

Djaq was gaping at the two. "That's crazy," she stammered before checking her watch, eyes darting nervously to the clock face. "Shouldn't we be leaving?"

Eve opened her mouth to protest the change of subject but Marian shook her head slightly, and Eve obediently pressed her lips together. "We'll leave in a bit," she replied. "Eve has a thing about being fashionably late."

"We have to make an entrance," Eve protested, lying back on the bed.

"Robin will be wondering where we are though," Marian commented.

Djaq raised her eyebrows as she perched on the bed beside Eve. "Since when are you bothered what Robin thinks?"

Eve propped herself up on her elbows. "Yeah, Marian! Are you finally softening towards our Mister Locksley?"

Marian sighed, settling herself into her desk chair and swinging her feet up onto the desk. "It's just so _weird_," she said. "When we were friends before we were only little, so there was none of the awkward boy/girl stuff that you get now. I was practically a boy anyway. But now…it's strange, because we're friends, but at the same time there's that question of is there anything more between us."

"Do you fancy him?" Eve asked bluntly.

"He's fit," Marian replied with a giggle. "I just don't understand how I feel, because we're friends, but then sometimes when I see him…"

"You're just a raging bunch of hormones really aren't you?" Eve teased.

Marian buried her face in her hands. "Yes," she admitted, her voice muffled. "He just…got…hot."

"Tonight could be interesting then," Eve said with a grin. Reaching into her tote bag again she pulled out a bottle of vodka, eyes sparkling. "Want to make it even more interesting?"

Djaq's eyes widened. "Where'd you get that?"

"My brother bought it for me," she replied. "Have you got any lemonade, Maz?"

Marian fetched a mixer and she and Eve had a drink, Djaq declining the offer. Marian winced at the foreign taste as Eve drank hers with relish, waiting impatiently for the Marian to finish.

After their drinks the three girls left, walking the short distance to Robin's house. The curtains were drawn but they could hear music and laughter as they walked up the garden path. Marian rang the doorbell, looking at Djaq, who was nervously smoothing down the front of her skirt. "You look fantastic," she whispered. Djaq smiled at her gratefully as the door swung open.

"Ladies!" Robin slurred happily, pulling Marian into a one armed hug and waving to the other two with his free hand, which was clutching a bottle of beer. "Welcome to my humble abode!" He swayed backwards, letting the girls into the hallway, but not letting go of Marian who was wrinkling her nose at the stench of alcohol on his breath.

"I'll go pour us some more of these," Eve said to Djaq, patting her bag which held the vodka before disappearing in the direction of the kitchen. Suddenly feeling awkward Djaq looked back to Marian, who seemed quite happily to be tangled in Robin's embrace despite the beer breath. With a sigh she fussed with her top, then walked into the living room.

It seemed like the whole sixth form was packed into the house. The downstairs was open plan, and crowded with youngsters chatting and laughing in small groups. Through the glass of the large patio doors that led to the back garden, Djaq could see more teenagers continuing the party outside.

She scanned the party, searching for a familiar face. Her eyes landed on Allan, but she felt a wrench of disappointment in her gut as she saw him in an armchair with a girl on his lap, kissing her passionately. Angry at herself for being bothered by this turn of events, she turned away, only to find herself face to face (or at least, face to chest) with Will Scarlett.

He smiled at her and her stomach jumped, as if an invisible hook had yanked it upwards. Cursing herself for the second time in ten seconds, she forced herself to focus on his words.

"Do you want this?" he asked, waving a bottle of Corona in front of her. "I stocked up." He smiled sheepishly, showing her that he was carrying two bottles.

"No, thanks," she replied politely. She glanced away, but was aware of Will's eyes still upon her.

"You look…" Will faltered. "Really nice," he finally managed to stammer.

Smiling, Djaq felt a weight settle around her shoulders as Marian came up behind her and wrapped an arm around her neck.

"Whoa," Marian commented as she noticed Allan. "He must be pretty wasted, right?"

Will shook his head. "He doesn't drink," he replied.

"Who doesn't drink?" Eve asked, arriving with two plastic tumblers filled with vodka and lemonade.

"Ugh!" Marian frowned at her cup as she took a sip. "How much vodka is in this?"

Eve grinned. "A little," she replied breezily. "Oh, and don't go in the kitchen if you don't want to be sick. Sarah's in there, letting the guys lick whipped cream off her tits."

As the others all made disgusted faces a familiar voice hollered behind them, "I thought this was meant to be a party?"

"Roy!" Will, Marian and Eve exclaimed delightedly as they turned round. Their friend, who they hadn't seen since he was expelled, was grinning at them.

As they caught up with Roy's news Allan untangled himself from the girl in his lap and joined his friends. "Is it just me or is it hot in here?" he asked with a grin, unfastening the top button of his black shirt and wafting the collar to stir air around his face.

Marian rolled her eyes. "Come on, let's go outside." The gang pushed their way through the crowded garden and through the patio doors, stepping out onto the decking. The air was cool but refreshing, and as the patio doors slid closed the noise level diminished slightly.

Allan squinted into the darkness, looking down to the bottom of the garden. "There's someone down there," he said, pointing. Lying on the grass at the far end of the garden were a couple, who seemed to be getting to know each other better beneath the overhanging branches of a willow tree. "Ooh someone's misbehaving!" Allan crowed.

"You can talk," Djaq snorted.

Smiling winningly at her, Allan jumped down from the decking. His eyes shone mischievously as he caught sight of a hosepipe lying coiled on the ground, attached to the outdoor tap. He scooped it up and turned on the tap, the rusted metal of the tap screeching in the night air.

The two people at the end of the garden yelped and jumped to their feet as Allan turned the hosepipe on them, showering them with cold water. They turned round angrily, and in the light from the outside lamp the gang could see it was Sarah and Tony, two of Guy's friends.

"Nice one mate," Tony growled as he stormed up to where Allan stood.

Allan shrugged. "Accident," he chirped innocently. Glowering at him Tony reached out and grasped Sarah's hand, pulling her into the house.

**XX**

A couple of hours later and the party was in full swing, every available surface scattered with empty bottles and glasses. Someone had slammed the glass door between the living room and the hallway, shattering part of the stained glass design and sending shards of broken glass to the carpet.

Marian had managed to completely lose Eve. Knowing what her friend could be like after a few drinks she reached for her mobile to call her, but it wasn't in her pocket. Remembering that she had left it in the pocket of her jacket she went into the hall, where she had left the coat.

As she rummaged in the pocket she heard a scream from upstairs. Looking up in alarm she heard the clatter of footsteps upon laminate flooring, and saw Sarah appear at the top of the staircase. Her hair was dishevelled and lipstick was smeared around her lips, one sleeve was pushed down over her shoulder, and she was frantically fastening the button on her skirt.

"Sarah?" Marian said tentatively. "Are you okay?"

Sarah didn't reply. She walked down the stairs and pushed Marian aside, opening the front door. Marian followed as Sarah swayed down the path, reaching out and grasping her arm.

"Get off me," Sarah snapped.

"What's happened?" Marian asked, not loosening her grip. Sarah started to cry and Marian guided her to the low wall that bordered the garden, sitting her down. She could feel the girl shaking. "Sarah, what is it?"

"Tony," she whispered through her tears. "We went upstairs, and it was nice just kissing him…but he tried to…" She took a deep breath. "But I didn't want to! And he said – he said -" She was choking on her tears. "He said it was my fault."

Marian hugged her closer. She wasn't particularly fond of Sarah, but no-one deserved that. "No means no, Sarah," she reassured her. "He should have listened."

"I hate him!" Sarah declared viciously, swiping a hand across her face. "I thought he liked me, but all he wanted was sex. Where are you going?" she added, as Marian stood up.

"I'm going to go and have a word with him," she replied firmly.

"No, don't!" Sarah reached out with desperate hands, stopping her from moving away. "He'll hate me, and I won't be able to hang out with that lot any more."

"Why do you want to?" Marian replied incredulously.

Sarah shrugged. "They're popular, she muttered."

Marian looked down at her, feeling a mixture of pity and disbelief. She wanted to label Sarah as pathetic, but knew how easy it was to become involved in the politics of the popular crowd. It was the easiest option to stay as part of the group, to avoid the torture that they inflicted on others.

"Besides, he'll be leaving soon," Sarah continued.

"Why?" Marian asked.

"Oh, Guy warned us all to leave before…" Her voice drifted off and her eyes flashed with nerves, as if she had suddenly realised that she had said too much.

"Before what?" Marian asked icily. "What's Guy planning?"

Sarah looked nervously over her shoulder, as if one of Guy's flunkies might be hiding in the bushes, eavesdropping on their conversation. "I can't say," she insisted desperately. "Don't make me tell you."

"I won't tell anyone I heard it from you," Marian promised. "Come on, Sarah, you've just been screwed over by that crowd. Screw _them_ over. Tell me what Guy's planning."

Sarah bit at her lower lip. "Alright," she said finally. "Guy was _so_ angry at Robin for inviting everyone except him to the party. So he's going to ring the police at eleven o'clock and have you all busted for underage drinking."

Marian looked at her watch. It was 10:19pm.

**XX**

Guy couldn't wipe the smirk off his face as he replaced the receiver in the phone box. He had just provided the local police with an anonymous tip off that there was a rager going on at 27 Drover Street, with loads of teenagers drinking underage. For good measure he had mentioned there might be drugs involved; he knew there wouldn't be, but figured he might as well put Robin even more in the frame.

Leaving the phone box he pulled the hood of his black hoody up over his head and walked up the road towards Robin's house, keeping to the shadows. The front garden was empty, and he found a vantage point behind a large rhododendron bush.

It wasn't long before a police car pulled up in front of Robin's house. Two policemen emerged, setting their hats on their heads as they strode up the garden path. Guy couldn't keep the smug smile from his face; finally, Robin and the rest of his little gang of rejects would get their comeuppance. His only slight regret was that Marian would be caught up in it; but she was one of them now.

One of the policemen rapped on the front door. Robin opened it, looking slightly surprised to see the coppers on his doorstep. "Evening," he said, his brow creased slightly in concern. "Something wrong?"

"Are your parents in, son?" one of the policemen asked.

"No," Robin replied. "They're away on holiday."

"We've heard that there's a party happening at this address."

"Party?" Robin shook his head. "Think you've been told wrong, sir."

"Can we come in?" the second policeman asked.

Robin nodded and let them in. Guy, hidden in the bushes, frowned. Something was wrong – Robin had seemed sober and far too calm, and there had been no sound of music when the door opened.

He couldn't see into the house from the front because the curtains were closed, so Guy sneaked down the driveway and climbed over the fence into the back garden. His mouth dropped open as he saw Much, Marian and the others sprawled over settees, a scene from the new Indiana Jones movie frozen on the television screen. The coffee table was covered in bags of crisps and packets of chocolate rather than beer bottles.

The police were talking to Robin. As Guy watched, the three of them laughed, then the policemen tipped their hats to the gang and left the living room.

**XX**

As Robin closed the door behind the policemen, he could hear the gang in the living room break out into giggles. He shushed them as he walked back in, peering through a crack in the curtains until he was certain the squad car had left. Turning round he caught a flash of movement beyond the patio doors and smirked, walking to the doors and pulling closed the heavy curtains.

As soon as he was sure Guy would not be able to see he let out a whoop of delight and relief. The others burst out laughing, and Robin yelled up the stairs that the coast was clear. The rest of the party goers, except Guy's friends who had left before 11 o'clock, clattered down the stairs grinning at their narrow escape. Eve was amongst them; she had been deemed to be far too drunk to be seen by the policemen, and bundled away into an upstairs bedroom.

It wasn't long before the party was back in full swing. Djaq ducked away from an exuberant dancer as she walked through the living room. She had lost all her friends; Marian was perched on the kitchen counter flirting with Robin, Roy and Will were having a strange and slightly drunken conversation about rats and chickens accompanied with wild arm gestures, and Allan and Eve had completely disappeared. She smiled as she saw Much, tidying empty bottles into a black binbag.

"Need any help?" she asked.

Much squinted up at her from where he was stooped over the coffee table, pushing his glasses further up his nose. "You aren't enjoying the party?" he asked.

Djaq shrugged. "I'm starting to think I'm not the partying type," she said with a laugh. "I've got a headache and I'm starving!"

Much straightened up and leant closer. "I have some cake in my room," he whispered conspiratorially.

"You have cake in your bedroom?" Djaq questioned sceptically.

"Yes, do you want some?" Much replied, looking at her earnestly.

Djaq laughed. "Sure. Why not?"

Beaming, Much abandoned his attempt at clearing up and led her upstairs, past a couple of their classmates who were kissing on the bottom step. "It's lemon cake," he rambled as they climbed the stairs. "I used natural yoghurt instead of fat, it actually really works…"

His voice drifted into silence as he pushed open the door to his bedroom and stopped dead. Djaq crashed into his back. "What's wrong?" she asked, falling silent herself as she peered over his shoulder.

The room was dark, but the curtains had been pulled haphazardly and the streetlights outside spilled hazy light through the gap. The light pooled on the bed, and Djaq let out an audible gasp as Allan sat up, frowning at the disturbance. Eve, lying on the bed beneath him, gave the two appalled teenagers in the doorway a sheepish smile.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I am so sorry this chapter took so long! This is going be to updated less frequently than my other fic, but, it did take a long time.

Anyway, I hope you like it and it was worth the wait! I loved writing the party - took inspiration from some of the house partys we used to have at my friend's house when we were in sixth form. Those were the days... The whipped cream, hosepipe, and door breaking incidents all really happened - I was only involved in one of them!!

Thanks for the reviews, and...review again! Please!


	8. I am never drinking again

**Chapter 8: I am never drinking again**

Djaq woke up to the rather unpleasant soundtrack of Eve retching into the toilet. She was lying on the floor in Marian's room; both she and Eve had stayed over after the party.

The toilet flushed and Eve stumbled back into the bedroom, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "I am never drinking again," she declared hoarsely.

Marian groaned as she rolled over in bed. "I feel terrible," she agreed.

Eve clambered back into her sleeping bag and lay down, closing her eyes and resting an arm over them as if the pale morning light was causing her pain. "What even happened last night?" she asked in the same hoarse voice. Her eyes flickered open as she frowned. "Were there _police_ there?"

"Yeah," Marian replied. "Thanks to Guy."

"I remember hiding upstairs…and dancing in the garden…" Eve suddenly sat bolt upright. "Oh my god, who did I kiss?"

"You kissed someone?!" Marian exclaimed, propping herself up on an elbow to look down at her friend. "I didn't know that!"

"I was kissing someone on a bed…damn it, who was it!" Eve rubbed at her temples, trying to coax the memory to the forefront of her mind.

"It was Allan," Djaq informed her tonelessly. After she and Much had caught the two kissing on the bed Eve had hurried off, embarrassed. No-one else had known that it had happened.

"Allan?" Eve stared at her, wide-eyed. "Please, please, _please_ tell me you're joking."

"'fraid not," Djaq replied, still in the same toneless voice.

"Oh, god." Eve burrowed down under the sleeping bag, pulling it over her head. "I am such an idiot," her muffled voice moaned from within her cocoon.

Marian dangled an arm off her bed and poked Eve repeatedly until she emerged tousle-haired from the sleeping bag. "What about Much?" she asked.

"What about Much?" Eve repeated. "He's sweet, but...well, there's nothing going on."

"He was really disappointed," Djaq told her acidly. She knew that she was being unfair; Eve had no idea that she was harbouring a tiny crush on Allan, so the girl hadn't done anything wrong. But she was still annoyed that not only had Eve kissed Allan, she'd hurt Much as well.

"He saw it?" Eve asked, groaning again when Djaq nodded. "I am never going to show my face in front of him and Allan again."

As Marian's mobile began to ring shrilly Eve disappeared back into her sleeping bag, covering her ears with her hands. After a short conversation Marian hung up the phone.

"Seems like you're going to have to face them sooner than you think," she laughed. "That was Robin. He's calling a council of war." She rolled her eyes. "Wants revenge on Guy. _Again_."

"Do I have to go?" Eve complained. "I was hoping to be able to hide at least until Monday."

"Yeah do you," Marian told her. "You were wasted, if the police had caught you you'd have been in such deep shit."

"I know, I know." Eve sat up reluctantly then clutched a hand to her mouth and ran for the bathroom again.

**XX**

Robin opened his front door, beaming at Marian. Nothing had happened the previous night, but he had enjoyed flirting with her. His eyes skipped to Eve, who was clutching a bottle of water, and he smirked. "How are we feeling this morning?" he asked her cheerfully.

"Shut up," she muttered, pushing past him. She heard Robin chuckle behind her as she walked into the living room, where Much, Allan and Will were gathered. Trying to avoid meeting anyone's eyes she sank down into an armchair.

As Marian and Djaq followed her in and sat down on the sofa, Robin stood in front of the assembled gang. "We have got to do something," he announced. "Gisborne had me suspended, and he nearly had us all arrested! He can't carry on thinking he can get away with pissing about."

"We stopped him last night though," Much said placidly. "Surely that's enough?"

Robin shook his head emphatically. "That was only because of Major, and Sarah's big mouth. If she hadn't blabbed then we'd all have been screwed. We need to be proactive, not reactive."

Eve closed her eyes as the others began to discuss various revenge plans. Her head was pounding, and she'd emptied the bottle in her lap. Standing up she slipped into the kitchen, which was still littered with traces of the previous night's events. Filling a glass with water she sipped at it slowly, staring out the window into the back garden.

"Playing hard to get, sweetheart?" came a playful voice behind her. Spinning around, Eve saw Allan slouching against the door frame, arms folded over his chest.

"No," she replied shortly.

"You don't want a repeat of last night?" he asked teasingly, quirking an eyebrow. "Never would have thought it of you. Innocent choirgirl Eve…"

Eve rolled her eyes. "It was only a kiss, A-Dale. Don't get cocky." She made to walk past him but he casually shifted his arm until it was blocking the doorway. Glaring at him she shoved him out of the way and walked past, hearing him laugh behind her.

Returning to the living room she avoided Much's gaze as she sat down. She liked him, but nothing had happened between them, so she didn't feel guilty for kissing Allan. But that didn't stop her feeling bad that he was hurt – she suspected he had a crush on her, and did not want to hurt his feelings.

Marian was speaking. "If we're going to do something to Guy, we need to try and get Tony too. What he did to Sarah…I don't like the girl, but she was in a right mess."

"Then why doesn't _she_ do something to get back at him?" Much asked.

"She's scared," Marian replied simply. "She'll let him get away with it just to keep her position in the popular crowd. We can't let him get away with it though."

Allan, who had returned to the living room and was leaning on the back of the sofa, suddenly snapped his fingers in the air. "I have an idea," he told them, an evil smirk twitching his lips. "Does anyone have photoshop?"

**XX**

A couple of hours later and between them, the gang had managed to produce what they believed was pretty sweet revenge. Robin had broken into his dad's office to print it off, Marian hanging over the back of his chair telling him what he was doing wrong, whilst the others helped Much clean up downstairs.

"You need to change the colour filter…no, not that button! Here, let me do it." Marian elbowed him aside and took command of the computer mouse, trying to ignore the fact that she was leaning over him, their bodies only a couple of inches apart.

Robin, lounging in the leather desk chair, couldn't help but grin at both Marian's bossiness and her proximity to his chest.

"There," Marian said triumphantly, pressing print. She moved to straighten up but Robin caught hold of her arm, forcing her to stay close at him. Twisting her head she opened her mouth to snap something at him, then slowly closed it as she saw the intensity in his eyes. "Robin…" she breathed softly, a mixture between a warning and desire. Her hair was falling over her face and Robin reached up and tucked a stray curl behind her ear.

The printer let out a loud noise as it whirred into action and they jumped apart, Marain stumbling backwards. As the printer began to spew out pages and pages of their creation, she muttered something about going downstairs and hurried out of the room.

Instead of going downstairs she darted into the bathroom and locked the door with a shaking hand, sinking down onto the edge of the bath with her head in her hands.

_I almost kissed him,_ she thought to herself fretfully. _He almost kissed me! And I _wanted_ him to._

The thought hit her with such force that she almost toppled backwards into the bathtub. Robin was cocky, and arrogant, and had such an irritatingly knowing smirk and twinkle in his eye. But much as she wanted to hate him for it, the mischievous expression in his eyes when he looked at her made her want to fling her arms around him and kiss him senseless.

Composing herself she left the bathroom and walked downstairs, relieved that Robin didn't call out to her when she walked past the office he was in. She found Djaq and Will clearing up in the living room, Allan waving a duster around aimlessly in the dining room, Much mopping the kitchen floor, and Eve collecting empties in the back garden. Grabbing a binbag she went outside to help, thankful for the fresh air.

In the living room Djaq looked round, surveying her and Will's handiwork. The living room looked almost as good as new, and Will had fetched out the hoover to finish off. Glancing upwards she frowned as she noticed that a sock had somehow ended up flung over the light fixture.

She raised her arm but knew that it would be ineffective; she was far too short to get anywhere close to the ceiling.

"Here," Will said behind her. "I'll do it." She felt his arm brush against the back of her head as he reached up, his fingers catching hold of the sock and pulling it down.

"I'm finished," Allan announced, walking up and snapping his duster against Djaq's arm. As she frowned at him he looked to Will. "Hey, why do you have my sock?" he asked, snatching it back from him.

"I'm not even going to ask," Djaq sighed.

Robin thundered down the stairs, waving a sheaf of paper in the air. "It's done!" he said happily. "I cannot _wait_ 'til Monday."

**XX**

On Monday morning, six figures waited silently behind a wall in the crisp autumn air. It was 7am, and they were watching the school caretaker unlock the school gates. There was a disturbance further down the road as Allan came strolling up the pavement, walking a dog that he had borrowed from his neighbour. He paused to chat with the caretaker and as the man's attention was held, Robin, Much, Will, Djaq, Marian and Eve slipped through the gate behind him.

They dove around the nearest corner, hiding as they heard the gates clang shut behind them. They listened to the grate of metal on metal as the chain was looped around the gates, and the snap of the padlock as it was locked securely. During the next hour they moved around the school, darting into buildings as the caretaker unlocked them, ducking into bathrooms and classrooms to cast their revenge on every available wall space.

When the first teachers began to arrive, just before 8 o'clock, the gang retreated to their hiding place near the school gate. As students began to stream through the gates they joined them in ones and twos, until they were all seated safely and innocently in their registration rooms.

Allan, having returned the dog and changed into his school uniform, arrived at school. Whistling brightly he strode up to the block where his reg room was. As he opened the door he saw a crowd of other sixth formers clapping hands over dropped jaws and chuckling in a mixture of delight and shock. Allan pushed his way through to the front. His handiwork stared down at him from the wall; an A3 poster depicting Guy and Tony, half-naked, in a passionate clinch. Tipping an imaginary hat to the crowd Allan bounded up the stairs, a self-satisfied smile on his face.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thank you for the reviews :) I'm glad you liked my twist at the end, I was hoping that I wouldn't get assaulted by fervent Much/Eve shippers! We will just have to wait and see where it leads...


	9. We need to make a stand

**Chapter 9: We need to make a stand**

"Assembly!" Mr. Little announced, knowing he was saying the one word that would send his entire registration group into groans and complaints. As the class clattered down the stairs they speculated grimly about what announcement Mr. Vaysey would have for them that morning; he only ever called assembly if he had some new rule to gleefully announce.

"He's probably just going to expel us all," Much muttered as he trailed behind Robin, Marian and Eve. "That would make life a lot easier for him."

"Yeah but then who would he have to torture?" Eve only half-joked.

"Maybe he'll surprise us," Djaq suggested hopefully as she, Allan and Will caught up with their friends.

"What d'you think he's gonna do, buy us all ice cream and give us the day off?" Allan snorted.

"Well, I'm so sorry for trying to looking on the bright side!" Djaq rolled her eyes as she elbowed her friend, and then smiled up at Will as he opened the door to the assembly hall for her.

The seven pushed their way into the back row, squabbling over who sat where. Marian and Robin managed to manoeuvre themselves into seats next to each other, and both Djaq and Much had to hide their annoyance as Allan flung himself into the chair next to Eve.

The sixth formers fell silent as Mr. Vaysey walked out onto the stage in front of them. "Good morning," he greeted them cheerfully, though his voice was laced with its permanent sneer. "Now, it had been brought to my attention that now is the time that we must begin thinking about the sixth form pantomime!"

An excited hum of chatter broke out in the hall. Every winter, the sixth form was responsible for writing, producing and performing a pantomime that was shown to all the lower years in the last week of term.

"I forgot all about that!" Eve squealed excitedly.

"Wouldn't get your hopes up, sweetheart," Allan muttered. Robin, too, was unimpressed, watching Mr. Vaysey through narrow eyes as he waited for the catch.

"I _have_ been thinking about it," Mr. Vaysey continued, still in the same singsong voice. "And I have come to the conclusion that I would rather stick pins in my eyes than watch you skip about trying to be funny, and thinking even more of yourselves than you already do!"

The hall fell incredibly silent and still as the wide-eyed students stared up at the man, wondering how he could deliver such poisonous words in such a harmless tone.

"Have a nice day!" Mr. Vaysey chirped, and left the hall.

The tense silence was broken as angry voices began complaining, everyone filled with vociferous annoyance.

"He can't do that!" Eve hissed angrily. "I've been looking forward to doing the panto for five years!"

Robin shook his head. "Don't worry, Eve. We'll fight it."

**XX**

"It's easy," Robin said confidently a few hours later. "We'll just do the panto anyway. Stuff Vaysey."

Marian rolled her eyes. "Robin, do you ever think before you speak?"

"Course I do, I'm not just a pretty face," he replied with a wink.

"Then why do you say such ridiculous things?" she hissed back at him.

"What? All I'm doing is trying to stop our lives being controlled by some power-crazed hobbit!"

"If you paused for a second and stopped rushing along on your one man crusade for justice, you might actually come up with a good idea!" Marian snapped back at him. "I'm not saying we _shouldn't_ fight back, just that we should do it intelligently."

"Are you saying I'm stupid?" Robin asked, his voice dangerous.

"Alright, alright!" Allan put his hands up to stop Marian retorting. "What did you have in mind, Maz?"

"My name is Marian!" she growled at him. "And stop trying to be the peacemaker, it doesn't suit you."

"Fine, I'll just let you rile Robin up and then you'll never get a snog," Allan replied, sinking back into his chair with a smirk.

As Marian blushed Robin ignored the comment and turned back to her. "All I'm saying is that we need to make a stand."

"And we can!" Marian cried, exasperated. "But we need to do it carefully. If we just _do_ a panto, where are we going to practise? How are we going to perform it? There is no way Vaysey or Prince will let us use the hall. We need to work _inside_ the system, make them think we're following orders, but work out a way to bend the rules without explicitly breaking them."

"Sounds brilliant," Robin said. "One question – how the hell are we going to do that?"

Marian looked back at him defiantly, then dropped her eyes. "I don't know," she admitted. "I haven't quite got that far."

**XX**

Much whistled to himself as he strolled out of the shop, a carton of milk swinging in his hand. It was almost dark, the streetlights casting pools of warmth onto the pavement.

About to take a left turn Much paused, considering the road ahead. He had recently worked out a route from his house to the shop that was a little longer than the way he usually walked, but coincidentally took him past Eve's house.

He decided to walk that way, telling himself that he needed the fresh air and extra exercise, and set off again. He had let Eve into his thoughts and now the pretty blonde wouldn't leave them, even though now when he summoned an image of her he saw her lying on his bed underneath Allan.

He had never dared hope that she returned his feelings, but had thought that maybe one day she would realise that he was kind, and loyal, and true, and would do anything for her. But then, out of all the boys she could have picked, it had been Allan! Allan, who was rude, and sarcastic, and insolent.

And handsome, and charming, and fun…

His only peace of mind came from the fact that ever since the party Eve had returned to her pre-party state of fending off Allan's jokey flirtations with a playful insult or roll of the eyes.

Much stumbled over his own feet as he turned the corner onto Eve's road and saw the girl in question sitting on the wall outside her house. The light from the streetlamps cast an eerie glow over her face, and she looked deathly pale. She was only wearing a tank top and shivering in the cool night air, her hands shaking as she pulled a cigarette from a packet and struggled to light it.

The surprising image of Eve with a cigarette spurred Much forwards and he was soon standing nervously in front of her. She looked up at him, startled, then turned her attention back to the cigarette.

"I didn't know you smoked," Much started.

"Neither did I," she responded dryly, finally getting it lit and lifting it to her lips.

Much shuffled awkwardly, not quite sure what to do. "Are you okay?" he asked eventually.

"Fine," she replied shortly.

"Do you – " Much was interrupted by the sound of something crashing inside the house. He looked towards the building in alarm, then back to Eve, who seemed unconcerned apart from the slight tensing in her shoulders. "Eve, are you – "

Again he was interrupted by a loud noise, this time the sound of a woman yelling Eve's name. Before Much could force any response from his lips Eve had stood, ground the cigarette beneath her heel, and disappeared into the house.

He stared after her for a moment, caught in indecision, and then turned and walked away.

**XX**

Allan tapped his pen impatiently against his notebook, his free hand propping up his head. He didn't bother to disguise a yawn, and the Drama teacher turned to look at him.

"Oh, are we keeping you up, Mr. A Dale? _So_ sorry," she apologised sarcastically, before returning to her lecture on set design. Allan flashed her a grin and then returned to the tapping of his pen.

He liked Mrs. Little, and knew that she wasn't really angry with him. She was young and quite pretty for a teacher, but to Allan's astonishment, she was married to Robin's bear-like registration tutor. She was fun and energetic and Allan loved their practical lessons, up on the stage in the hall; but he hated theory classes.

To Allan, drama was purely entertainment, getting to stride around and show off on a stage. It was the only thing he really liked at school, and his best subject – he was so used to creating stories and putting on a face for the public that playing a different person came naturally to him. Drama shouldn't be sitting in a classroom, taking notes on naturalistic set dressing.

Finally the bell rang and he grabbed his bag, ready to make a bolt for freedom. He was almost at the door…

"Allan, will you stay behind a moment please?" Mrs. Little called from behind him. Allan groaned and turned round, hoping that he hadn't gone too far this time – he really didn't want a detention.

"Yes, Miss?" He walked up to her desk, smiling at her winningly.

"I have to say I've been disappointed not to see you at Drama club this term," she said to him. "You've got great potential; it's a shame that you won't explore it further."

Allan blinked at her, for once stunned into silence. _He_ had great potential at something other than getting into trouble?

"The thing is, Miss, its after school," he explained.

"And you are busy after school?" she asked.

"Well, yeah." Allan shrugged.

"May I ask what you're doing?"

"Homework and that," Allan replied, shrugging again. "And the Playstation."

Mrs. Little sighed. "Honestly Allan, I believe you could be a great actor if only you applied yourself. It's unfortunate that we don't get as much time as I would like to perform in class; the Drama club would be a great way for you to gain more experience."

"Not being funny, Miss, but I think I'd explode if I had to spend a second longer than necessary at school," he told her. "Extra curricular activities aren't really my thing."

Mrs. Little eyed him appraisingly, and then sighed again. "Well, if you change your mind, it's tonight. And I'd love to see you there."

She turned back to her desk and Allan, knowing he had been dismissed, scarpered from the room before she could try and rope him into something else hideous. He chuckled to himself as he headed to the common room, finding it hilarious that someone would actually ask him to voluntarily stay behind at the end of the day.

He collapsed into his usual chair in the common room, Robin, Marian, Will and Djaq all looking at the new arrival. "What's so funny?" Will asked, seeing the smirk on his friend's face.

"You'll never guess what Mrs. Little just asked me!" he replied. "She wants _me_ to join the Drama club! Stay after school with the nerds and the teacher's pets, unlikely!"

Will just shook his head as Djaq giggled and Robin laughed. Marian, however, was staring at Allan with wide eyes.

"That's it!" she breathed.

"What's it?" Allan replied. "Please don't tell me you think it's a good idea."

"It's a BRILLIANT idea!" Marian replied. "We should all join!"

Robin, Allan, Djaq and Will were all staring at her in horror.

"Not being funny but you lot can't act to save your lives," Allan replied.

"Exactly!" Marian grinned, still wide eyed with excitement. "You don't have to be good actors in a pantomime." She emphasised the words _pantomime_ and slowly a grin spread across Robin's face.

"You mean, join the club and get them to put on a panto?" he checked his understanding.

Marian nodded eagerly. "We all join, any other sixth former that wants to be in the panto joins too, and we talk Mrs. Little into putting on a panto at Christmas instead of the play they normally do. Vaysey can't stop us because it's through the Drama club, but we still get to do it."

"You," Robin said slowly, "Are a genius!" He grabbed Marian's shoulders and dragged her towards him, planting a rough kiss on her cheek. "Allan, when does the club meet?"

"Tonight," Allan told him, looking slightly shell-shocked by the turn of events.

"Perfect." Robin beamed round at the gang. "Meet in here after school."

**XX**

Mrs. Little sighed as she walked into the school hall and saw the ragtag bunch assembled for the Drama club. No matter how much she advertised it, it had never been very popular. There were a few studious A Level Drama students, a collection of overeager year sevens, and a couple of year nines she had put in detention. It was almost impossible to put together a decent play with the cast she had in front of her, but they all enjoyed it, and that was what mattered.

She was just disappointed that Allan A Dale hadn't taken her invitation.

"Good afternoon," she greeted the students warmly. "Have you all got your copies of _The Angel of Death_?" Everyone except the sulking year nines nodded, pulling their copies of the play out of their bags.

"Wait!" a familiar voice cried behind her and she laughed. Trust Allan to make an entrance. Turning around, she was shocked to see a group of seven sixth formers tripping down the stairs.

"You're joining the club?" she asked Allan. "And you brought new members?"

"Sort of!" Allan replied. He slung an arm around his teacher's shoulders and led her towards the gang. "We've got a bit of a proposition for you, Miss."

"Oh?" she replied sceptically. "And what might that be?"

"Well, you know the sixth form panto has been cancelled? Well, we really want to do one, and we were hoping…" he trailed off.

"We were thinking maybe we could do it through the Drama club," Marian said, looking at her hopefully. "Everyone in the club can be in it too, but loads of the sixth formers will join and we'll write it and do the costumes and stuff."

"I don't think Mr. Vaysey would be very pleased," Mrs. Little said. "I'd love to help, but…"

"Please, Mrs. Little!" Robin interrupted. "This means a lot to us, and we'd love your help. We _need_ your help."

"Honestly Miss, it means a lot to us," Eve chipped in, and the others nodded fervently.

"Well…" Mrs. Little considered them and sighed. "Flattery will get you everywhere young man," she said teasingly to Robin. "And does this mean you'll be joining us after all?" She directed her question at Allan, and he nodded. "I'll do it on one condition," she agreed finally.

"Anything!" Marian said quickly.

"Allan has to stay in the club until the end of the year, even when the panto is finished." Mrs. Little set out her terms.

"He'll do it," Marian agreed swiftly, ignoring Allan who was gaping at her.

"Then we have ourselves a deal." Mrs. Little shook Marian's hand and then turned away, laughing at the expression on Allan's face.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I am feeling so weird right now. I had my last exam on Friday and came home from uni yesterday, so I am now no longer a student!! Three years of lectures, seminars, essays, exams are all over...not to mention a lifetime of education. It's a very weird feeling!

Anyway, I am still reliving my sixth form days through this! We did a panto and, if I may say so myself, it was awesome ;-) we did Aladdin and it was so much fun! Haven't decided which panto our favourites are going to be doing yet though...

Oh, and as an aside, I was looking for a play that the Drama club could be doing and saw one called _The Angel of Death_! So of course it had to be that!!

Thank you for all the lovely reviews :)


	10. Don’t get your knickers in a twist

****

Chapter 10: Don't get your knickers in a twist

"You want to go to the Yogi tonight?" Robin asked as he flopped down onto the arm of Marian's arm chair.

"Awesome!" Allan cheered.

"Yeah, great," Marian replied, rolling her eyes. "One problem – we aren't 18."

"So what?" Robin shrugged carelessly. "It's Thursday, student night. They don't ID."

"My dad would never go for it," she argued.

"Tell him you're staying at Djaq's."

Djaq snorted. "Like my parents would let me have a friend over on a school night."

"She isn't actually going to be staying over, stupid," Allan said teasingly. "Come on, haven't you girls ever lied to your parents before? Djaq, you say you're staying at Marian's. Marian, you say you're staying at Djaq's."

"And where do we actually sleep, oh clever one?" Marian asked sarcastically.

Allan grinned lecherously in response and received blows from two cushions, one thrown by each of the girls. "Oh don't get your knickers in a twist. You can all kip at mine. My dad's going to be away."

Will looked up sharply, an unvoiced question hanging in the air between him and Allan. Allan gave a tiny, almost imperceptible nod without making eye contact with him. Will knew what 'away' meant.

"There," Robin grinned. "Sorted. So who's in?"

"Me!" Allan replied immediately. Marian and Djaq eyed each other nervously then nodded slowly. Will shrugged, but inside he was thrilled to get to spend an evening outside of school with Djaq.

"Eve, do you need an alibi?" Allan asked.

"Nope, my parents don't care what I do," she replied. "Count me in."

"Much?" Robin asked. His oldest friend was sitting primly on a chair, arms folded across his chest, trying to look aloof over the rims of his glasses. "Much?" Robin said again.

"I think it's a stupid idea," Much told him flatly. "We won't get in, and we'll just all get embarrassed at the door. And if by some miracle we do sneak in, you'll get drunk, throw yourself at Marian, and make a fool of yourself."

"Then I'll need you to look after me, won't I?" Robin grinned winningly.

Much sighed. "Fine. But I want it on record that if it all goes wrong, I told you so."

"Consider it duly recorded," Robin teased him.

"Come over at seven," Allan told them. "You can have a few drinks at mine if you want."

"I have such a bad feeling about this," Much muttered, but everyone ignored him.

**XX**

"I really don't think this is a good idea." Much was still fretting even as he and Robin walked to Allan's house that night.

"Much, will you please relax?" Robin replied. He was used to talking his friend out of paranoid moments, but Much was really wound up about the night ahead. "You worry too much."

"But I'm not just worried about me, I'm worried about all of you! Especially – " He stopped talking, sensing that he had let his mouth run away with him again.

"Especially who?" Robin asked, instantly alert for gossip. "Especially Eve?"

Much shook his head resolutely, but his blush gave him away. "Yes," he admitted with a sigh. "I don't think a nightclub is the kind of place she should be going."

Robin raised in eyebrow. "What are you, her father now? Her moral compass? I'm pretty sure Eve can manage a night out in a club."

"It's not that simple Robin!" Much snapped. "I just think something's up with her. You saw her at our party – she was wasted! And I've heard Marian say that she gets drunk quite a lot. She's only sixteen."

"We all drink," Robin replied with a shrug. "I'm sure she can handle it."

"Well that's just it, I don't think she can! I think there's something going on at home she won't tell us about, and she's drinking and smoking and God knows what else…I just don't think a nightclub is the kind of environment she needs to be in right now!" he finished desperately.

Robin stopped walking and turned to face his friend. "Look, I think it's great that you care about her. I know you like her, and you'd be great for her. But if you keep acting like her father she's just going to push you away."

"So what am I meant to do? Stop caring?"

"You can care about her without smothering her and treating her like a child," Robin replied. "Hey, speak of the devil." He pointed ahead to where Marian and Eve were approaching them, both dressed for a night out. Robin let out a wolf whistle. "Looking good!" he shouted to them.

Marian rolled her eyes and Much leant a bit closer to Robin. "Maybe you should stop treating _her_ like a piece of meat," he whispered.

They joined the girls outside Allan's house, a modest mid-terrace with a wrought iron gate that creaked noisily as they pushed it open. Both Marian and Eve wobbled unsteadily in their high heels as the four crunched up the gravel path, Robin and Much reaching out automatically to steady them.

"I'm impressed," Marian said to Robin as they reached the doorstep. "Acting like a gentleman, _and_ you didn't even try to cop a feel."

"What can I say?" Robin replied, winking at her. "Maybe I'm growing up."

Marian snorted as she rang the doorbell, Allan throwing the door open within seconds. "Looking lovely ladies!" he greeted them. "You too, Robin."

Much scowled at the cocky teen as he pushed past him into the house. Allan just chuckled merrily, following him into the living room.

Will and Djaq were sitting on the sofa, Will in jeans and shirt and Djaq in a pair of combat trousers and an old t-shirt. She stood up as Marian walked in.

"I've got a few options for you in here," Marian said, patting the overstuffed backpack that was slung over her shoulder. Djaq smiled at her gratefully.

"What, you mean you aren't wearing that?" Allan teased.

Djaq rolled her eyes. "I couldn't leave the house in a skirt, not with my parents thinking I was going to study at Marians!"

"Come on, lets try these on," Marian beckoned her forwards.

"Much as I'd love a peepshow, you can change in my room," Allan offered, chucking a thumb towards the ceiling.

As Marian and Djaq trotted up the stairs Eve reached into her own bag, pulling out a sleeping bag and then a bottle of gin that had been buried underneath it. Allan had put glasses out on the coffee table and she grabbed one, pouring out the alcohol. Much threw Robin a pointed look.

Shaking his head, Robin looked over at Allan. "Where's your dad?" he asked.

"At my auntie's," Allan replied quickly, turning his back to the room as he fiddled with the CD player. Robin nodded and sat down, but Will looked at Allan's back in concern, noticing the taut muscles in the back of his neck.

**XX**

Upstairs, Marian and Djaq had been distracted from their fashion show, choosing instead to have a nose around Allan's room. It was surprisingly tidy for Allan, but was quite impersonal; just four blue walls, a plain blue bedspread, a wardrobe and a desk with a neat stack of books upon it. There were a couple of t-shirts discarded on the floor, and not much else

"Look at this," Djaq smiled, walking over to the desk and seeing two framed photos upon it. She picked one of them up, showing it to Marian, who laughed at the picture of Allan and Will as bright-eyed, knobbly-kneed ten year olds, both with beaming smiles.

"This must be his dad," Marian said, picking up the other photo. It depicted an even younger Allan upon the shoulders of a tall man with the same prominent nose and bright blue eyes as their friend.

"Do you know what happened to his mum?" Djaq asked, dropping her voice.

Marian shook her head. "I think she left, when he was little. I don't think she died."

"That's really sad," Djaq said softly, touching the glass that protected the image with her fingertips. "What?" she asked, realising that Marian was giving her a funny look.

"You…and Allan?" Marian asked.

Djaq snorted. "No way," she insisted, unaware that her blush was giving her away. "Besides, he likes Eve."

"No he doesn't!" Marian replied. "They only kissed. That's just Allan."

"Doesn't matter anyway," Djaq shrugged. "Come on, I'd better get ready."

As soon as she had settled on an outfit and got changed the pair clattered down the stairs and back into the living room. Will looked up and almost choked on his mouthful of beer as he saw Djaq, quickly lowering his intense eyes and surreptitiously wiping his mouth.

"Are you alright, Will?" the girl in question asked innocently, returning to her spot on the sofa beside him.

"Mmm," Will managed to squeak out, holding his arms stiffly by his sides to avoid brushing against Djaq.

After an hour spent chatting and drinking Robin checked his watch. "I think we should get going," he told them, stretching his arms above his head.

"Me too," Allan agreed excitedly, bouncing to his feet. "I cannot wait to get my dancing shoes on, show you all some moves…" He span in a circle and then did an awkward, shuffling moonwalk.

"The only move you'll be making is to the madhouse," Much muttered.

Allan froze and Will winced, waiting for an explosion that never came. Allan just grabbed his jacket and left the house, shrugging Will's comforting hand from his shoulder and ignoring everyone until they reached the bus stop at the end of the road.

"I hope the music is good," he said, plastering his usual grin onto his face. The ensuing argument about what constituted 'good' music was cut short as the double decker bus lumbered up the road towards them.

"Oh no," Djaq groaned as she fumbled in her purse for bus fare.

"You okay?" Will, standing behind her, asked.

"I forgot to get change," she replied, blushing bright red as she held up the bus. "I guess I should…" She gestured as if she was going to get off the bus, but Will pulled out his wallet.

"Here," he said quietly, dropping enough fare for the two of them into the slot.

"Thanks," she said gratefully. "You didn't have to – "

"I wanted to," he interrupted her, and sat down. Djaq sat behind him, next to Much, and stared at the back of the quiet boy's head. She didn't think she had ever met someone quite so considerate.

The bus arrived in the city centre and the gang trooped off it, butterflies beginning to flutter in more than one stomach as the prospect of sneaking into a club underage finally seemed real. Even Robin faltered slightly, before taking the lead and striding confidently in the direction of the club.

There was a short queue to get in and they joined the back of it. As they reached the bouncers Robin went first, greeting them with a cheery "Evening, mate," and walking straight past. Marian followed, then Will, Eve, Much, and Djaq, with Allan bringing up the rear. Much had insisted on an entry plan, with the rationale that bouncers were more likely to let in pretty girls, and if they were each followed by a boy they would assume that they were together. Allan was at the back as out of anyone he would be able to talk his way in.

"We did it!" Eve hissed gleefully as they congregated inside the club, looking round in awe.

"This is awesome," Robin said gleefully. "I told you it was a good idea. Bar?"

"I'm just going to the loo," Djaq excused herself, dashing off as the others made their way to the bar. When she returned she found Marian, Eve, Robin and Allan already throwing some quite interesting shapes on the dance floor. Much was sitting at the bar tucking into a bowl of peanuts, and as she smiled fondly at him Will appeared at her side. He handed her a drink silently, eyes fixed on the dance floor.

"Thanks," Djaq said awkwardly, looking down at the glass. "But I don't – "

"I know you don't drink," Will said, still staring resolutely at the dance floor, his voice barely audible over the pounding music. "It's cranberry juice."

Djaq stared at the profile of his face in shock. He had noticed she didn't drink, _and_ what her favourite drink was?

"Well – thank you," she told him genuinely, taking a sip of the juice. "I'll get the next round."

Will shrugged as if to say it didn't matter, lifting his beer to his lips and taking a swig. Allan bounded towards them, seemingly drunk on the atmosphere, bouncing around them as if he had springs attached to the balls of his feet.

"Are you coming to dance?" he asked. "C'mon Djaq, come and dance with me!" He reached out and grabbed her hands, knocking the glass out of her grip so it smashed against the floor. "Whoops!" He gave a grin in lieu of an apology and danced his way back to the others.

Djaq stared after him, barely noticing that Will had disappeared from her side. She turned back to him and found him gone, then saw he was back at the bar. As she joined him he was ordering her another drink.

"I'll get it," she said, reaching for her purse.

"It's okay," Will replied.

"No it's not! Allan should be paying for it, he spilled it!" she replied indignantly.

"Don't worry, I'll get the money off him later," Will placated her.

They both knew that he wouldn't.

**XX**

Robin was struggling to take his eyes off Marian, who was dancing and giggling happily in front of him. Reaching out he caught her hand and span her around, before pulling her into him and dipping her backwards.

He pulled her back up and Marian's laughter faded as she looked over his shoulder.

"Look what the cat dragged in," she said in disgust. Twisting round Robin saw Guy and some of his friends walking into the club.

"Thought I could smell something bad," he laughed, waving his hand in front of his nose as if trying to get rid of a bad smell.

"He's seen us," Marian groaned, before turning to Robin in panic. "What if he tells the bouncers we're underage?"

"Then we tell them he is too! Don't worry, he isn't going to spoil tonight," he reassured her, before making her laugh again by twirling her in an elaborate spin.

A while later Robin went to the bathroom. He was washing his hands when he saw Guy appear in the mirror behind him.

"For one awful moment there I thought that was my reflection," he said to Guy as he turned round. "How can you cope with seeing _that_ – " he indicated Guy's face " – in the mirror everyday?"

Guy's face twisted into a scowl. "I'd be very careful if I were you Locksley," he warned, his voice low and threatening. "You really must be as stupid as you look if you haven't realised by now that I can get you in trouble like _that_." He snapped his fingers together, the sharp sound echoing on the tiled walls. "A couple of quiet words to Mr. Vaysey and you can kiss Oak Tree and your precious Marian goodbye."

"Are you threatening me?" Robin asked, squaring up to him. "You may have been able to bully the rest of the school into submission before I came along, but I'm not scared of you."

Guy snorted. "Robin Locksley, freedom fighter and champion of the losers! You're pathetic, Locksley. You really thinking putting on some stupid pantomime is making a stand for justice?"

"At least I'm doing something to help other people, instead of skulking around in the shadows," Robin replied.

"All you're doing is helping yourself!" Guy spat back at him. "Putting on _Snow White_ with Marian as the lead, and you as Prince Charming. So predictable! You, Locksley, are shallow, and transparent, and pathetic."

"It's a shame we've already cast the evil stepmother," Robin replied. "You're certainly bitter and twisted enough for that part. But don't worry, you can have front row seats and I'll wave to you after I've kissed Marian." Winking at the irate Gisborne he shoved past him and back into the club.

**XX**

Much watched as Eve stumbled towards him. He was worried about her, but couldn't help but smile at the grin lighting up her face.

"Hi hi!" she greeted him, hitching herself up onto the stool next to him and signalling the barman.

"Hi hi," Much returned with a laugh. "Having fun?"

She nodded. "This is _brilliant_," she told him. "You haven't danced yet, you have to come and dance!"

"I will," he promised. "But I'm warning you, I have two left feet!"

"Well I have two right feet, so we'll make a good pair," she said with a giggle.

Much's smile faded slightly as he watched her take a deep swig of the fresh drink that the barman had placed in front of her. "Eve, can I talk to you for a minute?" he asked her.

"Of course," she replied, looking at him in interest. "What's up?"

"Is everything okay?" he began hesitantly.

Eve visibly tensed, the grip on her drink tightening. "Everything is fine," she replied, avoiding his eyes. "Why?"

"It was just that night I saw you at your house, there was an argument…and before, you said your parents don't care what you do…" He trailed off as Eve's eyes clouded over with anger.

"Everybody argues," she snapped at him, sliding off her bar stool. "I'm fine, just leave me alone."

"I was just worried about you!" he protested.

"I'm not yours to worry about!" she hissed, before disappearing back towards the dance floor.

Much groaned, mentally slapping himself for so successfully putting his big fat foot in it. He dragged himself off his stool and followed Eve, intending to apologise to her, but stopped dead as he reached the edge of the dance floor and saw the girl march straight up to Allan, grab him, and start kissing him.

"Here we go again," Marian sighed as she saw them kissing. Robin followed her gaze, then looked round quickly for Much. He soon found his friend, who was watching the pair with a distraught look on his face.

"Don't, Much," Robin called out as Much walked past him. He reached out to stop him, but Much shrugged him off and kept walking until he reached Allan and grabbed his shoulder, pulling him away from Eve.

"Get away from her!" he snapped.

Allan raised an eyebrow. "Alright, mate? Can't you see you're interrupting something here?"

"Just leave her alone!" Much insisted, his voice faltering slightly as Allan's eyes hardened.

"I'm not doing anything she doesn't want me to do. Am I?" he added, directing his question towards Eve.

"No," she assured him, glaring at Much. "Just go _away_, Much."

"I won't! You –" he pointed a shaking finger towards Eve " – are only doing this to make yourself feel better! And you – " he indicated Allan " – are taking advantage of her!"

"Just back off," Allan snarled at Much. Robin quickly went to stand by his friend as he realised Allan was squaring up for a fight.

"I'm sorry – no, wait, I'm not sorry!" Much continued, even though he was clearly getting nervous. "I care about Eve, and this isn't right! Don't you care?"

"Of course I care!" Allan snapped, his eyes flashing angrily. "I'm just not a Mother Hen like you! Go and fret over somebody else, Eve doesn't need you."

Much mouthed wordlessly at him, for once speechless.

"He's right," Eve hissed at him. "Go away and stop embarrassing yourself."

His eyes filling with hurt, Much turned and practically ran off. Robin sighed and took off after him.

"You alright?" Allan asked Eve.

She nodded. "Going to the bar," she muttered, and disappeared as well.

Allan shrugged helplessly at Marian, who shook her head. Even she didn't know what was going on in Eve's mind.

**XX**

"I want to go home," Much insisted to Robin, who had caught him up just before he left the club. "You lot can stay, but I'm going."

Robin shook his head. "I may be a useless mate sometimes, but you aren't going home alone in this state. Look, let me go and fetch the others and we'll leave. Just wait here."

Much sighed and conceded, leaning against the wall with his arms folded across his chest. Robin disappeared back into the throng, scanning the dance floor for their friends.

He couldn't see anyone, but then noticed Marian near the edge of the floor. She was with someone, but it wasn't one of the gang…

Robin frowned as he realised it was Guy that had accosted her. He knew that Marian could look after herself but he was filled with fury as Guy reached out and touched her arm.

He pushed his way through the crowd, letting out a growl as he watched Guy drag Marian roughly towards him and plant a kiss on her lips. Marian was pushing him away but Robin lunged forward, grabbing Guy's arm and twisting it behind him, pulling him away from her.

"Don't you dare touch her!" he shouted, his fist clenching.

"Robin, don't!" Marian called from somewhere behind him. Robin's eyes darted away from Guy as he looked for her, but the next thing he saw was a fist swinging heavily towards his nose.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Ohhh the angst! Ohhh the teenage shenanigans!! I really enjoyed writing this chapter. I hope you liked reading it!

I'm trying to post as much as I can before I start work (booo) on Wednesday. Also, I want to get to chapter 12...you will see why when I post it ;-)

Oh, and going off on a random tangent...I found an American review of Angel of Death earlier, because it only aired in the States a few weeks ago. They dared to comment on Harry Lloyd's lack of acting skills and said he should be "seen and not heard" !! That really, really annoyed me, because if you ask me he should have more screen time! Not just for obvious reasons ;-) but because he really is a cracking little actor in the making. You only have to see things like his Doctor Who appearance, and read reviews of his theatre work, to be able to tell that. If anything, RH totally underused him - exhibit A, the love confession in the barn (sorry, but I think it was ridiculous). It just came out the blue, and we'd had no chance for any Will-character-build up, because all he does is stand and look pretty in the background. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but you know what I mean! Sorry, rant over!

Thanks the the reviews, and...review again? Please?? I plead with Will puppy dog eyes...


	11. I used him to make myself feel better

**Chapter 11: I used him to make myself feel better**

"It was a lucky punch," Robin insisted, wincing as Marian pressed the ice pack more firmly against his swollen eye. "You distracted me, he'd never have managed to land it otherwise."

"Will you just shut up?" Marian snapped at him. "Trying to be a bloody macho man, and then screaming when I put ice on your bruise."

"It's cold!" he protested. "OW!" he yelped, and Marian smirked.

"Did that hurt?"

"Yes!" he snapped.

"Good." She smirked again at his expression, then removed the ice pack. "The swelling seems a little better, but you're going to have a black eye in the morning."

"Wonderful," Robin replied sarcastically, standing up.

The gang was gathered in Allan's living room, silently watching as Robin and Marian bickered. Robin winced as he looked in the mirror; the skin around his eye was already bruising.

"I think it's safe to say we're never going to get in the Yogi again," Will commented dryly as he watched Robin poke at his eye. Robin hadn't been able to return the punch; as soon as he had lunged for Gisborne Will and Allan had caught hold of him, and the bouncers had been there in seconds to throw the lot of them out.

"I told you something bad was going to happen," Much told them all with an air of superiority. Allan scoffed but didn't retaliate – after the fight, they had called an unspoken truce, as the whole gang bound together to protect Robin.

"It wasn't my fault!" Robin protested. "Gisborne was kissing Marian, what was I supposed to do?"

"Let me take care of myself!" Marian snapped back at him. "I know you think you were being chivalrous, but I've managed to handle Guy quite well for five years without your help."

"It didn't look that way to me!" Robin returned.

"Will you two just shut up?" Eve stood up, rubbing her temples. "I've got a headache, I'm going to bed." With that she stood up and stormed upstairs, Marian following her. Allan had said that the two could have his bed for the night.

"Anyway Much, the night had already gone to hell before I went near Gisborne!" Robin rounded on his friend, residual anger from the club bubbling in his veins. "You upset Eve and nearly got in a fight with Allan."

"I didn't get us all thrown out!" Much retorted.

"Maybe we should save this until the morning?" Will intervened. He cast a look towards Djaq, who was curled up in a chair and seemed half asleep. "We should get some sleep, remember we have to go to school tomorrow." He checked his watch. "Today, actually."

Allan groaned, swinging his legs over one arm of his armchair and tipping his head back against the other, apparently deciding he would just sleep there. Much grabbed his sleeping bag and lay down on the floor as far away from Allan as he could get. Robin lay next to him, still mumbling about how he would have knocked Gisborne out if he hadn't been pulled away.

Will stood up and walked over to where Djaq was dozing, giving her a gentle prod on the shoulder. "Djaq, move over to the sofa."

She blinked sleepily at him. "What?" she managed intelligently.

Will laughed quietly and tugged gently at her arm. "Come on."

She uncurled herself from the chair, yawning widely, and Will led her to the sofa where he had put her sleeping bag. She smiled her thanks as she slipped into the warmth of the sleeping bag, rolling over and dozing off again almost immediately.

Will switched off the lights and lay down in his own makeshift bed on the floor, his head next to the sofa. As he stared into the darkness he felt something land on his forehead and gave a slight jolt. Reaching up tentatively he found Djaq's hand resting against his head; her arm had fallen off the edge of the sofa and was dangling down above him. He smiled as her fingers twitched, tangling into his hair, and closed his eyes, trying not to laugh at the tickling sensations on his scalp.

**XX**

Djaq blinked as she woke up, disorientated for a moment until she remembered where she was. Checking her watch she frowned, wishing she hadn't woken so early.

She wriggled her fingers and toes, yanking her arm into her body as she felt her fingers bump into something soft. Leaning over the edge of the sofa she saw Will's peaceful face below her, dark hair tufting over his forehead.

She studied his face, taking the chance to map every detail. Soft hair curling around his ears. Dark eyebrows over closed eyes. Long lashed resting upon pale cheeks. Straight nose with tiny snub ending. Lips slightly smiling in sleep. He looked happier and more at peace than she had ever seen him awake; he always carried a slight air of worry. She suspected that he had spent his whole life looking out for Allan, without Allan ever being aware of the guardian at his shoulder, and that his worry manifested itself in a twitch of the eyes and a tensing in the shoulders.

Rolling onto her back she stared at the ceiling, mind whirling with confusion. Ever since she first laid eyes on Allan she had, admittedly, had a slight crush on him. But then last night, she had been annoyed by his inconsideration in spilling her drink and running off without even apologising. He made her laugh, and he was a fun friend to have around – but that was it. When she'd seen him kissing Eve she had braced herself for a wash of disappointment, but it hadn't come. Instead, she had giggled as Will rolled his eyes at the pair, and her stomach had twisted as he smiled down at her reaction.

After the showdown between Guy and Robin the whole gang had been thrown out, and had to walk across the town to find a taxi. Djaq had shivered and Will noticed that she was cold even before she did, draping his jacket over her shoulders without a word.

She loved the fact that he did things for her, that he did things for everyone, just because he wanted to. He didn't expect gratitude, or kindness in return; he just did things because they would help them, or make them happy.

Allan groaned as he woke up, standing and staggering in the direction of the bathroom. He trod on Much as he laboured across the living room, and within seconds an argument had broken out.

Djaq sighed, her moment of peaceful contemplation shattered, but a moment later was full of gratitude for Allan disturbing the peace; it granted her the chance to watch Will's eyes flicker open, his face transforming from sleepy peace to adorable confusion.

Maybe waking up early wasn't so bad after all.

**XX**

Marian woke up with two tasks in mind for the day ahead. She needed Robin out of the way for one of them and Much and Allan for the other; luckily, the period before lunch satisfied all three requirements. They were all in class, as were Djaq and Will, leaving Marian and Eve relaxing together (and in Eve's case, nursing a hangover) in the common room.

Guy was holding court at the other end of the room and, excusing herself to Eve, Marian walked over to where he sat like a King reigning over his subjects.

"Hi, Guy," she greeted him sweetly. "Can I have a word?"

Guy smirked. "Of course," he replied, swaggering after her as she led him outside.

"Listen, about last night…" Marian started in the same light, sweet tone.

Guy's smirk widened. "Yes?"

Marian's face twisted in fury and, summoning all her strength, she slapped Guy sharply across the face. "Don't you dare do that again! Don't you ever, ever try and force yourself on me, do you understand?"

"Oh, I understand perfectly," Guy snarled back at her, clutching his reddening cheek, his mask ripped off to reveal the fury underneath. "You're casting your allegiance with that weak, pathetic piece of scum. Well, don't come crying to me when you get bored of this strange phase you're going through. You're going to realise what a mistake you made, hanging out with those losers all this time."

"Don't speak about my friends like that," Marian replied, her voice dangerously low. "Every single one of them is worth ten of you."

Guy shook his head, laughing patronisingly. "Oh, Marian," he said pityingly. "You throw your lot in with them, and you'll get what's coming to you. All of you will."

"Don't threaten my friends," Marian said, in the same quiet, firm voice. "You call Robin pathetic – look at yourself. Skulking around, telling me to watch my back just because I had the good sense not to fall for your poisoned words."

"Do not make me angry, Marian," Guy warned her.

Marian laughed. "What are you going to do? Hit me, like you did Robin? Go on then, hit me!" She was laughing openly at him, holding her arms out to her sides, inviting him to release his anger upon her. "Come on Guy, hit a girl, prove to me that you truly are a coward."

Guy glared down at her, breathing heavily through his nose, fists clenching at his sides. "You'll get what's coming," he finally spat at her, before turning on his heel and marching back inside.

Marian sagged against the wall, the adrenaline that had flowed through her veins beginning to subside. It had been exhilarating to stand up to the bully like that; but at the same time, the rational part of her brain told her how stupid she had been, riling him up as she had.

She followed Guy inside and returned to Eve, quickly recapping what had happened.

"You're an idiot," Eve told her affectionately. "Seriously, Marian, he could have hurt you! I don't trust him to keep his temper."

Marian shrugged. "He didn't touch me though. No harm done."

Eve sighed. "You don't have to prove yourself, you know. I know you can take care of yourself, and Robin knows it too. You don't need to get in a competition with him to prove that you can handle Guy."

"It wasn't about that," Marian protested. She sighed as Eve gave her a pointed look. "Okay, so maybe it was a little. He just treats me like some damsel in distress that needs rescuing all the time."

"So let him," Eve replied with a shrug. "Don't look at me like that! He fancies you, it's obvious, and he likes the real you. The Marian that can look after for herself, but still look fantastic in a skirt and heels. What does it matter if occasionally he gets an attack of macho hormones and wants to protect you?"

"Macho hormones?" Marian repeated with a giggle. "That's the thing though Eve, I always thought he liked me for me, but now I'm not so sure. When we were kids, he liked me _because_ I was a tomboy! I didn't care about getting dirty or playing with the boys. That's why he called me Major – he always said I wasn't a Maid Marian, I should be Major Marian!"

Eve snorted. "That's so cheesy."

"I know." Marian smiled fondly. "I like it, though. But now I feel like he wants me to be Maid Marian, swanning around in dresses, leaving him to be the gallant gentlemen and protect me from the Guy Gisborne's of the world."

"Marian, will you listen to yourself? You have a gorgeous bloke who thinks the world of you, and wants to look after you, and you're still complaining?" Eve shook her head. "You need to put things in perspective."

Marian stared at her for a moment, sensing some concealed emotion behind Eve's words. "What's going on, Eve?" she asked quietly.

"What do you mean?"

"Please don't get defensive on me," Marian replied. "It's just, there's obviously something wrong. And it hurts me that you won't tell me about it."

Eve sighed. "Is it really that obvious?"

"To me, it is." Marian sighed. "I'm so sorry, I've been distracted since Robin came back. And I feel awful that I haven't talked to you before now. But please, tell me what's up."

Eve studied her hands, avoiding Marian's gaze. "My parents are splitting up," she said after taking a deep breath.

"Oh, Eve…" Marian reached out and squeezed her friend's hands.

"I know it's for the best. They've been arguing so much, and my dad…he just gets so _angry_ with her. It's been horrible living there the past few weeks. So it is a good thing, it's just a bit of a bummer, you know?"

Marian nodded and pulled Eve into a hug. "Thank you for telling me," she murmured into her hair. "And if you ever need to get away just come to mine, you can sleep there, anything."

"Thanks." Eve smiled at her gratefully. "I'm sorry I've been acting like such a monster recently."

"It's not me you have to apologise to," Marian replied.

"I know," Eve sighed. "Much?"

Marian nodded. "And Allan."

"Mmm," Eve agreed. "I guess I used him to make myself feel better." A grin slowly spread across her face. "Doesn't hurt that he's gorgeous," she added, and both her and Marian burst into giggles, relieved to put the tension of the past hour behind them.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I apologise in advance for the rambling nonsense that is going to be this note. If you don't want to read my random thoughts of the day, skip to the review button...or the "get this crazy author away from me" button.

First things first: the chapter. I admit, I used Djaq's mind as a way of channeling my own pervy Will-thoughts. I possibly got slightly carried away...

Also, Marian. I tried to do some major character-rescue because I realised that my Marian was a bit wimpy, really. So I tried to inject some kick-ass Marian, hopefully successfully? And I couldn't resist dropping in that little bit of Rob/Maz canon speech!

My general thoughts on this chapter are that I have lost my fanfiction mojo somewhat. It was a bit of a battle to get it written and I'm not a big fan of it, but hopefully next chapter (which is almost written) will redeem it somewhat.

Onto happier times - my RH geek-side came out in full force today. I was in a toy shop looking for a Doctor Who thing for my Who-obsessed best friend, and what was next to the DW section? Only RH fun!! There was a castle playset which my inner-child was desperate for, and some character model things. Now, I like a bargain, and these were half price...so the geeky part of my brain started to rationalise that it was a good price for an RH fix. However, my I WANT A WILL OR ALLAN TOY excitement soon ebbed away as I found they only had Sheriff, Robin or Gisborne! _Oh noes!_ cried I, saddened that my dreams of being able to say in story disclaimers that I DO own Will Scarlett floated away on the breeze. (Not that there was a breeze - that shop was a sweatbox). I was half-tempted by Gisborne, then realised it had the kind of plastic face that could give an innocent fangirl nightmares. I would not be able to pretend that the beautiful Richard Armitage had been shrunk in a freak accident and was standing on my desk.

Then, at the dinner table earlier, my mum was saying that she got sunburned in the garden today - "But I wasn't even in the sun, I was in the shade!

Cue me saying, as any self-respecting RH obsessive would, "You're always in the sun, Robin, and I'm always in the shade."

- blank looks from other family members -

"Erm, never mind...so, dad, how was work?"

And finally: Coming up in chapter 12 - MAJOR WILL/DJAQ FLUFF/ANGST EXPLOSION WARNING!! I got carried away writing it, as I tend to do, so be excited. Or afraid.

:)


	12. He’s amazing, and that’s the problem

****

Chapter 12: He's amazing, and that's the problem

_Isomerism in Organic Compounds_

Djaq stared at the words that she had just copied onto a fresh page in her notebook and frowned. She tilted her head to the right and squinted, but the topic of that day's Chemistry lesson could have been written in Swahili for all she understood of it.

She tried to force herself to concentrate on the whiteboard in front of her, focusing on the teacher's voice with as much strength as she could muster. The Chemistry teacher was a kindly woman, but often spoke rapidly and in shorthand, seeming to forget that the students sitting in front of her did not have the Chemistry degree that she possessed.

It was frustrating for Djaq, who prided herself on her aptitude for Science. She had coped quite well with the lessons until recently, when suddenly the content had become a lot more difficult.

She glanced sideways at Will, whose dark head was bent over his notebook, pencil flying across the page as he transcribed the teacher's words. Blinking, she looked up at the whiteboard again, where a complex diagram had appeared depicting the subdivisions of isomerisms. Not that she had the faintest clue what an isomerism was.

Laboriously she copied out the diagram, followed by a table of formulas.

_As the number of carbon atoms increases, the number of possible isomers increases rapidly…_

Finally the teacher ceased talking, instructing the class to turn to chapter six of the textbook and work on the exercises there. As soon as a low hum of chatter had filled the room, Djaq turned to Will.

"Help," she said simply.

He looked up at her, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "You need help?"

She nodded urgently. "I hate asking for help, so don't laugh at me. It's just that this –" she indicated the textbook "- is the most confusing thing I have ever seen in my entire life."

"I don't really get it either," Will reassured her. She narrowed her eyes at him slightly, wondering if he was only saying it to make her feel better, and then decided it didn't really matter. In fact, it was a good thing if he was lying, because that meant he _did_ understand it and could help her.

"So we can work on it together?" she asked, and he nodded. "Can I come over tonight?"

The tips of his ears turned red as she invited herself to his house and he tried to rest his head casually against his hand to hide the burn. "We have panto rehearsal tonight," he reminded her regretfully.

"Oh." She bit at her lower lip. "Tomorrow? I know it's Saturday, and you probably have better things to do…" she trailed off.

"Tomorrow is fine," he replied, hoping that she didn't notice his shaking hands.

**XX**

Djaq lay on her stomach on Will's bed, her brow slightly furrowed as she stared at the formula upon the page of her notebook. The end of her pencil rested on her lower lip. Will sat on his desk chair, slouching backwards, long gangly legs stretched out in front of him and socked feet resting on the mattress near her elbow.

His Chemistry notebook rested on his knees, his pencil was loosely grasped in long pale fingers, but the formulas written upon the page in his neat, tidy handwriting were unread. His eyes were glued to the slender girl lying upon his bed, rather than the letters and symbols scribed on the page. He couldn't quite believe that Djaq was in his house. In his _bedroom_. Lying on his bed!

As if moving of its own accord his hand began to glide across his notebook, pencil lines quickly filling the empty space at the bottom right hand corner of the page in front of him. His eyes barely left Djaq's face, his eyes transmitting the beautiful picture in front of him to his skilled fingers, forming a delicate image on the paper.

He started in shock as she looked up at him, catching his blatant stare. His hand jolted, sending a thick black pencil line through half of the equations on the page, and he ducked his head to try and hide the vibrant flush that flooded his cheeks.

Apparently choosing to ignore the fact that Will's gaze had been focused on her face, Djaq reached out a hand. "I think I'm missing part of that last equation from class on Friday, can I check it?"

Will stared at her in horror, clutching his notebook in hands that were suddenly sweaty. "No," he managed to squeak, covering the page with his hands as if it would make Djaq forget that he had the equation she needed in front of him.

"No?" she repeated, arching an elegant eyebrow. There was amusement in her eyes as if she thought he was joking, but it faded as he stayed still, the notebook hidden protectively, looking like a deer caught in headlights. He was desperate for the ground to open and swallow him whole.

Djaq wasn't sure whether to pretend the whole weird incident hadn't happened, or act playful and tease him out of his secretive behaviour. Choosing the latter option she slid gracefully from the bed and swung one leg over his lanky limbs, which were still stretched over the space between his chair and the bed. Trapping his legs between her own she reached out her hand again, a playful smile quirking her lips. "Let me see!" she insisted, her voice bubbling with a mischievous giggle.

Will shook his head resolutely. His brain barely acknowledged the fact that he had moved; the rest of his body was frozen, trapped between shame at her catching him staring and fear that she would see that he had drawn her, whilst his mind was in awe at her beautiful, laughing face hovering in the space in front of his.

Djaq made a grab for the notebook in his lap but Will instinctively pulled it into his body, praying for it to somehow spontaneously combust. She frowned at him slightly, then a very un-Djaq-like, mischievous grin lit up her face and she thrust a hand past the barrier of his slender arms, her fingers making contact with his stomach. Twitching her fingers she tickled the area just underneath his ribs. With a yelp Will jerked backwards, the grip on his notebook momentarily loosening. Taking advantage of his weakness Djaq grasped the book, wrenching it away from Will's desperately clinging fingers.

"Aha!" she crowed triumphantly, retreating back to the bed with her prize. Will made one last lunge for the notebook but she jumped backwards, settling cross-legged on the bed. Will could only stare in horror as she flicked through the pages, finally arriving at the page from Friday's class. He saw her eyes widen slightly as they noticed the sketch at the bottom of the page. They widened even further as she took in the delicate pencil lines forming a beautiful, detailed portrait of her contemplative face.

His fingers twitched involuntarily as he waited for her reaction. The tiniest, most optimistic part of his brain dared to momentarily hope that she would realise how much love had poured from his fingertips into the image and declare that she reciprocated his feelings, but the larger, rational part of his brain expected her to freak out at his apparent stalkerish tendencies.

The reaction he hadn't expected was sadness. As he waited nervously he saw her large brown eyes fill with tears. Will jolted forward awkwardly, hovering with the seat of his jeans on the edge of his chair, unsure of whether or not he should move toward her in comfort. He got his answer when she shook her head slightly.

Suddenly standing, Djaq thrust the notebook back at Will. He took it automatically, the tips of his fingers brushing against the soft skin of her hand. She jerked her hand back as if his touch had burned her, looked at him for a moment with eyes that were almost fearful, then turned and hurried out of the room.

"That went well," Will muttered softly to himself as he stared at the solid wood of his bedroom door swinging slowly back into place.

**XX**

An hour later Will was still sitting in his chair, drumming his pencil against his notebook in a relentless cacophony. She had looked _scared_ of him, and he had no idea why. Will had always assumed he was about as threatening as a fluffy bunny rabbit.

He needed help, and he knew who he had to turn to. Allan had always been there for him; he wasn't great at advice, but he could always cheer him up. Grabbing his mobile from the desk he called Allan.

"Hey, Allan. I need to talk to you. Can you come over?"

It was only ten minutes before he heard the front door open and Allan's heavy footsteps on the stairs. He strode in, throwing his jacket down on the floor and collapsing on the bed in a pile of sweaty limbs.

"I ran," he said in explanation as Will wrinkled his nose. "What's up?"

Will sighed, and then explained everything that had happened between him and Djaq. "And she looked scared, and I don't know why!" he finished desperately.

"Mate, I'd be a bit freaked out if I caught you drawing pictures of me," Allan said. "Seriously Will, when I said I'd back off and you could have her I expected you to actually do something about it, not scare her off."

"I didn't mean to!" Will replied, running a desperate hand through his hair. "She wasn't meant to see the stupid picture. It's bad enough that she saw that, but she looked so sad…I just want to make sure she's okay."

"So call her," Allan replied with a shrug.

"It's not that simple! I'm not brave like you."

Allan sat up, turning to face Will. "Mate, you're brave," he said quietly. Will was shocked by the seriousness of his tone. Allan was never serious. "Just not confident."

"Same difference," Will shrugged. "I'm still not going to call her."

"Fine." Allan pulled out his phone.

"What are you doing?" Will asked in panic. "Stop it!" He lunged for the phone but Allan easily dodged him, laughing.

He pressed the call button and lifted his phone to his ear. "Hi, Marian?" he said. Will heaved a sigh of relief. "Listen, something happened with Will and Djaq today…I think she's upset, can you make sure she's okay and call me back? Will is worried. Sure. Thanks."

"What did she say?" Will asked nervously.

"She's going to go round and see Djaq, she'll call me when she makes sure she's alright," Allan replied. He smirked. "Do you want to draw me while we're waiting?"

**XX**

After ending her call with Allan, Marian immediately found Djaq's number and called her.

"Hey…can I come over? Okay, see you soon."

She was slipping her feet into shoes even as she hung up the phone, and grabbed a jacket as she hurried out of the house. She had no idea what was going on – Allan hadn't exactly been forthcoming on the phone – but if Djaq was upset, she needed to be there.

Djaq lived the furthest away of the gang, but it still only took twenty minutes to walk there. Marian rang the doorbell and the door was opened by a short, friendly looking woman, wiping floury hands on her apron.

"You must be Marian? It's nice to meet you, dear. Djaq is upstairs. Second door on the left."

"Thank you," Marian replied gratefully, kicking her shoes off and hurrying up the stairs. She came to Djaq's door and found it closed, a name plaque written in glitter and decorated with stickers declaring it to be her room. Marian knocked quietly on the door.

"Come in," Djaq said tonelessly.

Marian pushed the door open and found Djaq lying on her bed, one arm draped across her eyes as if she couldn't bear the light assaulting them. The room was small and painted cream, a few photographs pinned above the bed.

"I like your door sign," Marian said as an opener, perching on the edge of Djaq's bed.

"My sister made it," she replied with a smile, but the amusement quickly faded from her face.

"What happened, Djaq?" Marian asked softly. "Allan called me and said something happened between you and Will."

"What?" Djaq half sat up, worry mingling with anger on her face. "So he's telling everyone now?"

"Allan didn't tell me what happened," Marian reassured her. "He just said you were upset, and that Will was worried. They wanted me to make sure you're okay."

"I'm fine," Djaq replied tersely.

"No you're not," Marian countered.

"I said I'm fine!" Djaq snapped, sitting up abruptly. "Just leave me alone." Marian looked at her, wounded, and Djaq sighed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

Marian reached out and touched her friend's arm lightly. "Please tell me what happened," she said softly.

The gentle touch and tender words seemed to cause something to snap inside Djaq and before Marian knew quite what was happening the girl was sobbing into her hands. Marian reached out and pulled Djaq towards her, holding her in an embrace so Djaq's tears soaked through the shoulder of her shirt.

"I'm sorry," Djaq sniffled eventually, pulling away from Marian and wiping her eyes on her sleeve.

"That's okay," Marian soothed, passing her a tissue. "Eve's almost drowned in my tears the times I've cried on her shoulder."

Djaq snorted then blew her nose, taking in a couple of deep, calming breaths. "I'm okay now," she assured Marian. "Thank you."

Marian was torn between amusement and exasperation as she looked at the girl who was trying to fix an expression of assuredness on her face, but failing thanks to her bloodshot eyes and tearstained cheeks. "Tell me what happened," she said again, quietly but firmly.

Djaq sighed, collapsing back onto the bed. "Will drew me," she said bluntly.

"He drew you?" Marian raised an eyebrow. "What's so bad about that? Was it a bad drawing?"

Djaq shook her head. "It was a brilliant drawing," she said quietly. "That's the problem."

"I'm sorry, but I'm not really following." Marian scratched at her temple, brow furrowing. "He drew a nice picture of you…and that made you cry?"

"Yes," Djaq replied, a little hiccup of laughter escaping her as she realised how stupid it sounded. "He wasn't supposed to be drawing me! He was _supposed_ to be doing Chemistry homework, but he drew me, and it was amazing. _He's_ amazing, and that's the problem!"

The last few words came out as a wail and Marian automatically reached out to squeeze her friend's hand comfortingly, even as she smiled at her behaviour. Djaq was always so calm and practical; it was a rarity to see her so confused. "You like Will." It was a statement, not a question.

Djaq grabbed a cushion and pressed it over her face to hide her blush. "Yes," her muffled voice replied.

Laughing openly now, Marian grabbed the cushion and playfully hit her friend with it. "You love him!" she said gleefully.

"No I don't!" Djaq protested, trying to snatch the cushion back.

"Djaq and Will, sitting in a tree…" Marian sang, still laughing.

"Marian!" Djaq growled, sitting up and lunging for the girl

Marian hopped off the bed and danced out of Djaq's reach. "K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" she finished triumphantly.

Djaq folded her arms, pouting slightly. "Are you quite finished?" she asked.

"Yes." Marian smiled at her sheepishly. "Sorry. I thought I was twelve again, for a minute." She returned to the bed and settled herself back down next to Djaq. "Seriously though, why is it such a bad thing? Why did you cry?"

Djaq stared at her hands, pressing her fingertips together and then intertwining her fingers, trying to keep them occupied. "I realised I liked him a couple of weeks ago, that night we went to the Yogi. But I told myself it didn't matter, I had to ignore it…and I thought it would be easy, because he didn't like me. But then I saw that drawing…" She sighed heavily. "I can't explain it Marian, it was just drawn so…so beautifully. He'd made me look beautiful!" She gave an incredulous giggle. "And the way he looked at me, I could see it in his eyes. He was so afraid that I would hate it…"

Marian clapped her hands together happily. "But that's brilliant!" she beamed. "He obviously likes you, and you like him…" she trailed off as she recognised the anguish in Djaq's eyes. "But you're unhappy. So what's the problem? I'm sorry, but I don't really see it." She gave an apologetic shrug.

"I told you before," Djaq said with a sigh. "Will isn't the kind of boy I'm supposed to like."

"Ohhh," Marian said, expelling a long breath of air as she realised the problem. "He isn't a Muslim."

Djaq shook her head. "My parents wouldn't be very impressed if I bought a Christian boy home."

"Is it really that serious?" Marian asked. "I'm really sorry, but I don't know much about Islam."

"Well, I'm not having an arranged marriage or anything," Djaq told her. "But my whole family expects me to marry a Muslim. I don't think they'd be angry if I didn't, but they would be disappointed. And that's worse, somehow."

Marian nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly. She knew how terrible it felt to let her father down – a sad look was a hundred times worse than a lecture.

"Also…" Djaq looked back down at her hands. "My dad's friend has a son, who is my age. And I know my parents would love it if I chose him."

Marian thought for a minute, picking her words carefully. She didn't want to insult Djaq's religion or culture, and needed to find the right way to offer advice. "Wouldn't they love it more if you were happy?"

"I suppose," Djaq replied slowly. "But I will only be happy if I know I'm not disappointing them. So me and Will – well, there is no me and Will. And there never will be." With those words she reached out and picked up her Chemistry book from where she had dropped it on the floor, and Marian knew that the subject was closed.

**XX**

As soon as she left Djaq's house Marian pulled out her phone and called Allan, knowing that Will would be working himself into a state.

"Hey, Allan. Yeah, I spoke to her. She's okay, I think…look, I'm really sorry, but you're going to have to tell Will she isn't interested. She just freaked out because she realised he liked her, and didn't know what to say…yeah I know, it's a shame. Okay. See you Monday. Bye."

Hanging up she looked at the small handset, guilt settling heavily in her stomach. She felt terrible for lying, but Djaq had made her swear never to tell anyone about her feelings for Will. She had insisted that it was better if he never found out; if he did, she was afraid that he would hound her, and try to make her change her mind. This way, perhaps their friendship could survive.

Marian was just glad that it was Allan, and not her, who had to break Will's heart.

* * *

**Author's Note:** - ducks for cover from irate Will/Djaq shippers -

I am determined not to ramble like crazy in this A/N. But excuse me for a moment while I die of squee...

Okay, I'm alive again. Its just, 12 reviews for one chapter? You guys made me so happy, which is why you get this chapter today instead of tomorrow!!

Right, gush over...and thanks again :)


	13. It's show time

**Chapter 13: It's show time**

The last few weeks of term passed in a blur of coursework, exams, and preparations for the panto. The gang was so busy that there was barely time to acknowledge the subtle shifts in their relationships with one another, let alone adjust to the changes in order to regain a sense of normality. And yet, their busyness pushed them together, forcing an uneasy truce between the friends.

Eve had explained to both Allan and Much about why she was acting so erratically, and as expected had received very different reactions. Allan had just shrugged; he was sympathetic for what she was going through, but didn't really care that she had used him – in fact, he would have been quite happy to have a repeat of their kisses. Much, on the other hand, had fussed around her, asking if she was okay every time she turned around.

Will and Djaq, too, had settled into an awkward peace. Will, already painfully shy, hadn't been able to make eye contact with her for days after she found out he liked her; whilst Djaq, guilt settling heavily on her stomach for lying to him, had been similarly ill at ease around him. However, they spent the majority of every day together, and had slowly fallen back into their friendship.

Robin and Marian, meanwhile, had a relationship that had become even better than before. It was obvious to everyone else that they were smitten with each other, but disguised it behind constant bickering and flirtatious banter. Robin kept making lewd jokes about how he would get to give her a snog in the penultimate scene of the panto, but everyone knew he truly relished the prospect of getting to kiss her.

Mrs. Little had tried to persuade Mr. Vaysey to allow them to perform the panto to the lower years during school time, as was tradition, but to no avail. Instead, they were performing in the evening on the Wednesday and Thursday of the last week of term.

"I am so nervous!" Eve squealed as she flopped down next to Marian in registration on Wednesday morning.

"We'll do fine," Marian reassured her automatically as she had been doing for weeks; but she gave away her own nerves with a tense muscle twitching in her jaw, and her foot tapping incessantly against the leg of the table.

"We'll be better than fine!" Robin boasted, but even he didn't sound as cocksure as normal.

Much couldn't even speak; he was already terrified at the prospect of stepping out on stage in front of everyone.

The atmosphere in the classroom next door was similarly tense. Out of Will, Allan and Djaq only Allan would actually be appearing onstage; but they had all put so much effort into the production they were all worried about it.

Djaq was staring at a list of cues for the music, as she would be in charge of the sound. She was responsible for making sure all the music came on at the right time, and though she had memorised the play list and practised a hundred times she couldn't take her eyes off the sheet, her eyes rapidly skimming back and forth.

Will, who had helped to paint and prepare most of the props and scenery, kept jerking forwards with wild eyes and a cry of "Did I – " before remembering that he had in fact finished making that prop, or added an extra tree to a backdrop, and sinking back down into his chair.

Allan was feverishly muttering his lines under his breath; even he felt the significance of the evening ahead. _They_ all liked the panto and found it funny, but they had to make an audience of potentially three hundred people laugh too.

The day dragged, but eventually the final bell rang and the sixth formers raced home for dinner before hurrying back to the school to prepare for the performance.

Will was the first to arrive, checking each of his props and all of his scenery with expert precision, adding a flick of paint here and there. Eve and Marian were close behind him; Eve, as stage manager, made sure that all the props and costumes were in the right places for quick changes between scenes whilst Marian, as Snow White, put on her costume.

Soon the backstage area was filled with frantic panic as everyone succumbed to their nerves. They could hear their families and friends beginning to file into the hall, taking their seats, the chair legs scraping against the wooden floor.

Djaq was up on the balcony that ran along one side of the hall, checking the sound system, when she noticed her parents and younger siblings enter the room. Relieved to see them she ran down the stairs to greet them, before quickly retreating back to her position.

As the hall filled up and seven o'clock approached, the backstage area fell quiet. Eve made sure that those who were in the first scene were waiting in the wings, and then raised her walky talky to her lips. "Djaq?"

"Yes?"

"Hit the music." She flicked a row of light switches, turning off all the lights in the hall. The audience hushed as they were shrouded in darkness and Eve lifted the mouthpiece again, mustering a nervous smile. "It's show time."

**XX**

The curtain was still opening when the audience began to laugh, amused by the sight of Allan as the Evil Stepmother, dressed to the nines in a hideous blue dress and sitting at a dressing table brushing his long blonde wig.

As the entrance music faded Allan lay down his hairbrush and stood, stretching out his arms and letting out an affected yawn. He pranced across the stage, exaggerating a graceful stride, before stopping in front of the Mirror. The Mirror was actually one of the year eleven boys dressed in black, holding an ornate frame in front of his face.

"Mirror Mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?" Allan began with the famous line, putting on a high voice and fluttering his false eyelashes at the audience.

The panto continued in a riotous mess of slapstick humour, bad jokes, lively music and overdramatic acting. Marian received a few wolf whistles when she stepped out onto the stage, and the Seven Dwarves (including Much as Dopey) received a roar of laughter when they shuffled out of the wings, walking on their knees, to which shoes had been tied.

There was a fight in the middle during which half the audience got soaked by water pistols and covered in silly string, a mock-up of the Weakest Link in which audience members participated and were consequently custard-pied, and a few choruses of the traditional "It's behind you!" When the curtains finally closed, and then reopened for the cast to take their bows, they received a standing ovation from the audience.

"That was _brilliant_," Marian enthused as the gang, thrilled by their success, gathered backstage.

"We were awesome!" Robin agreed, exchanging high fives with Allan.

"It looked great from the balcony," Djaq agreed. "Your scenery was fantastic, Will."

Mrs. Little poked her head around the corner, smiling at the happy students. "Your adoring fans are waiting outside," she told them.

Djaq's family, Will's family, Robin's parents and Eve's brother Jake were all waiting for them in the hall.

"The stage looked brilliant, son," Dan Scarlett praised Will as he pulled his eldest boy into a hug. "We're going to get going, your mum's feeling tired. Do you need to stay?"

Will shook his head. "I'll come home with you."

"Allan, do you want a lift?" Dan asked the boy, who looked very strange as he was back in a t-shirt and jeans, but his face was still smeared with make up.

"Please. Thanks, Dan."

The Scarletts left with Allan in tow, Djaq and her family following soon after.

"Me and Jake are walking home," Eve told Marian. "Want to come with us?"

She shook her head. "I'm going to stay here for a bit. I lost Snow White's basket at some point, I'm going to look for it."

"I'll stay with you," Robin volunteered immediately. Eve and Much both raised their eyebrows at him. "What!" He held up his hands in defence. "I'm just going to walk her home, make sure she's safe."

As a disbelieving Much and Eve left with their families Marian headed backstage, Robin following. He leant casually against a wall, watching as she burrowed through a box full of props.

"So, how was that kiss, eh?" he asked cockily.

Marian gave him a withering look over her shoulder. "Oh, it just made me relieved that I didn't have to kiss you at every rehearsal," she teased him.

Robin gave her a mock-hurt look. "You wound me, my lady," he declared, clutching a hand to his heart.

"Alright, knock it off Prince Charming," she replied.

Robin chuckled. "You think I'm charming?"

Marian rolled her eyes. "I think you're incorrigible," she replied. "Here, I found it." She held the basket up triumphantly. "Come on, let's go. The caretaker will be wanting to lock up."

They switched off the lights behind the stage and walked back into the hall. Before the moment was lost Robin reached out and grasped her arm, pulling her round to face him. "Are we going to keep playing games forever?"

Marian frowned at him. "What do you mean?"

"You know you can't keep on resisting me," he replied with a smirk.

Giving an impatient growl Marian wrenched her arm from his grip. "For a moment there I thought you were going to be serious," she said angrily.

"I am!" Robin protested. "C'mon Major, I'm not playing games. You know what I want."

"What's that?" Marian asked, her heart starting to beat faster.

Smirking again Robin reached for her again, pulling her towards him. "This," he whispered, before pressing his lips against hers.

Neither of them noticed Guy, lurking in the shadows by the door, his jealousy manifested in a sneer upon his face.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Uh oh! Nasty Guy is lurking! And Robin and Marian have finally got their act together...

Thanks again for the reviews. Just wanted to say that I, much like Marian, have very little knowledge about Islam so thanks to those who have told me of my mistakes!! I've changed a couple of things and have left others for the sake of the plot, hopefully what I've written won't offend anyone, and please continue to pick up on my errors in case I can rectify them!!


	14. I need you

**Chapter 14: I need you**

"I can't believe it's over," Marian said sadly, from where she perched upon Robin's knee. He tightened his grip around her waist and pulled her closer to him, planting a kiss on her cheek.

"I just can't believe we pulled it off," Will commented.

"So much for Vaysey and his rules," Allan agreed gleefully.

"Do you guys want to come over this afternoon and celebrate our success?" Eve asked. "We need to take advantage of finishing early. _And_ it's the holidays!"

"No more Vaysey for a whole fortnight," Much agreed happily. "But me and Rob have to go shopping, we haven't bought our Christmas presents yet."

"It's Christmas on Monday!" Marian said incredulously. "You guys are useless."

"It's a good job I've got you to get me organised now, then, isn't it?" Robin replied, nuzzling at her neck. Marian pushed him away.

"Sorry Eve, me and dad are leaving for my auntie's house as soon as I finish school," she told her friend apologetically.

"And I have to go straight home, mum isn't well," Will offered his own excuse.

Eve nodded understandingly, then looked to Djaq. "Djaq?"

Djaq looked quite discomfited by the question, casting nervous eyes towards Will before looking back to Eve. "I'm…busy," she replied.

"Oh." Eve looked disappointed and Marian's heart went out to her – she knew her friend was dreading returning to a house still torn apart by bitter rows.

**XX**

At the other end of the common room a grimace was fixed on Guy's face as he watched Marian and Robin fawn over one another. He _hated_ Robin, had never felt so much passionate anger towards another human being. And now the arrogant bastard had swaggered into the school and stolen Marian from him; Marian, who Guy had spent five years wooing.

The thought of revenge was the only thing preventing him from grabbing hold of Robin and hitting him until he pleaded for mercy. He _needed_ revenge, needed to do something to make Robin suffer, something to wipe that cocky smirk from his hateful face.

Despite his desperation for revenge Guy was trying to limit his thoughts on the matter. He knew that the only way to truly hurt Robin was to do something to Marian; but he didn't want to even entertain the idea of doing something to hurt the girl. He hated her, too, for choosing Robin; and yet even in his angry, twisted mind Guy knew that if he truly loved her, he had to let her go.

Just not to Robin.

But if Robin was out of the way…

The seeds of a plan began to ferment in his mind. Relieved by the sense of purpose that came with the prospect of revenge, Guy left the common room, heading in the direction of Vaysey's office.

**XX**

"But I want to see it!" Luke demanded, pouting up at his older brother.

Will sighed and shrugged in acquiescence. "Fine," he conceded, cuffing his younger brother around the head playfully. "I'll get the tickets."

He had gone home after school to find Luke playing a noisy video game in the living room, crying out in sadistic glee every time he killed one of the attacking zombies. His mother had been in bed, one hand resting protectively over her forehead, but she had mustered a smile when Will tentatively entered the room.

He knew that she was putting on a brave face, not wanting him to worry, and so tried to maintain the pretence and not fuss over her. But he had still been concerned, and after his fifth offer to fetch her a drink or an extra pillow, she had pulled a ten pound note from her purse and insisted that he take Luke to the cinema.

And now Luke had persuaded him to see the popular new action movie, even though Will would rather have watched paint dry than another rubbish car chase.

He paid for the two tickets and turned round, counting the change to see if he had enough for popcorn. Staring down at the money in his wallet he stumbled into someone, and looked up in dismay to apologise for his clumsiness.

The apologetic look faded from his face as he realised that it was Djaq he had knocked off balance. He would have blushed and stammered his apologies had he not been appalled into silence by the teenager standing at Djaq's side, one hand resting possessively on the small of her back.

The stranger was glaring at him and Will managed to summon his voice, battling against the strange desire to sink his fist into the face in front of him.

"Sorry, Djaq," he forced out, his voice strangled.

"Don't worry about it," she replied. Her voice was casual but he could tell that she, too, was compelling herself to act as if this very awkward situation was perfectly normal. "This is…" Her voice trailed off as she gestured at her companion, biting at her lip as though saying his name would make his presence a reality.

"Amir," he introduced himself, offering a hand politely even though his eyes were still narrowed in suspicion.

Will automatically grasped the proffered hand, giving it a perfunctory shake. There was an uncomfortable silence, Will looking at the ground whilst Djaq stared at him with guilty eyes, broken only when Luke walked up behind Will and poked him in the spine.

"The previews are starting!" he complained.

"Right." Will shook himself out of his trance and pointed in the vague direction of the door to their screen. "We're…"

"Yeah," Djaq interrupted his stammer, looking relieved that the horrible meeting was over. "I'll see you. Sometime."

Will nodded and forced his limbs to move, deaf to Luke's chatter about coke and popcorn. He was relieved when he finally sank into his seat, no longer having to focus on things as difficult as walking, leaving his mind free to mull over this horrifying turn of events.

Djaq had a boyfriend. Or at least, some boy who had brought her to the cinema and felt comfortable enough to rest his hand on her back.

His fists clenched and he gritted his teeth against the surge of anger that ran through him when he thought of it. Amir had dared to touch her. Djaq! _His_ Djaq.

But she wasn't his, and that was the problem.

Will was filled with humiliation when he remembered Djaq's uncomfortable "I'm busy" earlier that day. She obviously hadn't wanted to say that she had a date, hadn't wanted to hurt him or make him feel awkward. Did everyone else know? Was it some big secret, some big joke that Djaq had a boyfriend and he, Will, was a heartsick loser?

The sound of gunfire exploding on the screen jolted Will back to the present. The darkness of the cinema was suddenly oppressive and Will jerked out of his seat, pushing down the row, ignoring a couple of disgruntled protests as he banged against shins and sent a box of popcorn flying.

He flew out of the door, back into the foyer, and took in a deep breath of air. A couple of people milling by the concessions stand eyed him in surprise, and Will turned away from their gaze, darting into the sanctuary of the toilets.

Wrenching the tap he stuck his hands under the stream of cold water, splashing it up over his face. He rested his hands against the counter and stared at himself in the mirror, droplets dripping from the end of his nose, his eyelashes spiking from the wetness as he blinked the water from his eyes. Will had never really contemplated his face before, never been one to examine his own features and assess them in terms of beauty, but as he considered himself in the mirror a sense of self-loathing he had never felt before washed over him.

_No wonder she doesn't like you_ he thought viciously, his face twisting as he snarled at his reflection.

**XX**

In the girl's toilets on the upper floor of the cinema, Djaq was having a similar staring contest with herself. Her stomach was churning; she actually felt ill, nauseated by the horror of the stilted exchange between her and Will.

Her parents had been dropping hints for weeks, inviting Amir and his family around for tea, commenting upon his handsome looks, his generous nature, his intelligence and bright future. She had finally conceded, agreeing to just one date, purely to shake off their unsubtle insistence.

She had been glad at first; her mother had looked so pleased when she had agreed to the cinema trip, and her father had seemed proud. And Djaq had believed that she could go to the cinema, say it hadn't worked out, and that would be the end of it. None of the gang would have ever had to know.

But now, in a cruel twist of fate, the man she truly loved had seen her at Amir's side.

Her stomach twisted again at the memory of Will's face, hurt flowing through his expressive eyes even as he fixed a mask of normality onto his face. He had tried so hard to act like he hadn't been affected by the meeting, but his eyes always gave him away.

She blinked at herself in the mirror, trying to compose herself. Amir would be wondering where she was, and she had to face him sooner or later; she couldn't hide in the toilets all afternoon, appealing as the idea was.

Attempting to fix a happy smile onto her face, and failing as spectacularly as Will had done earlier, she left the safety of the toilets and returned to Amir.

**XX**

Allan stared around at the chaos that reigned in his living room. _Like a Christmas tree exploded_, he thought to himself, recognising the irony of the idea even as it crossed his mind. The one thing he didn't have was a Christmas tree; just the sparkling contents of a cardboard box scattered haphazardly around the room.

He had been glad earlier that Eve had never thought to ask him what he was doing that afternoon. He'd been planning to decorate the house, to try and inject some Christmas cheer into both the atmosphere and his father. But after fetching a large box crammed with festive cheer from the top of his wardrobe he had realised that he had no talent whatsoever in the garnishing department.

He picked up a length of silver tinsel, the shimmering strand trailing from uncertain fingertips. Allan looked around for an appropriate place for the tinsel, eventually flicking it upwards so it settled across the light fixture on the ceiling. That would do.

A few minutes later and a wreath hung crookedly on the wall, a collection of santa and reindeer figures marched along the mantelpiece, and more tinsel adorned the tops of picture frames. Allan tucked a plastic sprig of holly behind his ear and stepped back, proudly admiring his handiwork.

Feeling satisfied by his efforts he sank down onto the sofa, picking up the remote and flicking on the television. An old cowboy movie was just starting and he settled back contentedly, swinging his feet up onto the coffee table.

Allan looked up as someone began knocking on the front door. In fact, 'knocking' was far too mild – whoever it was was hammering their fists against the wood, frantic and unrelenting.

Unfolding himself from the sofa Allan hastened to the door, yanking it open before the visitor could knock it down. He opened his mouth to snap at whoever was making such a racket, only to close it in surprise as he found Eve on his doorstep.

She was crying, her eyes red-rimmed and her face blotchy, her hands shaking where they were still raised in the air. Allan barely managed to get out a "What're you doing here?" before she threw herself into his arms, clinging desperately to his shirt.

"I need you," she sobbed into his shoulder.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I am so happy right now. Why? Because I got over 100 reviews for one story!! I have NEVER got over 100 reviews for one story before, so I am a very very happy little fan fiction author.

So, thank you :)


	15. Keep drinking that poison

**Chapter 15: Keep drinking that poison**

Allan, stunned into silence, staggered backwards as he tried to manoeuvre the weeping girl up the step and into the house. He managed to back them both into the hallway, reaching around her to push the door closed.

"Shh," he murmured into her hair, rubbing her back awkwardly and wishing that somewhere in his education, amongst the useless maths and geography, he'd had a lesson on how to look after a distraught girl. "It's alright, come on now, shhh…"

He continued murmuring nonsense words, trying to comfort her, until she pulled away from him and wiped her nose on a crumpled tissue. "Sorry," she managed to say through her sniffles. "Marian is away, and Much didn't pick up his phone…I didn't know where to go."

Allan took her hand and pulled her down onto the sofa in the living room. "What is it?" he asked, squeezing her hand. "What's happened? Do I need to kick someone's ass?"

She snorted, wiping at her cheeks with her sleeve. "No," she replied. "Unless you want to go up against my dad."

"What did he do?" Allan asked urgently, more worried by the second. "Did he hurt you?"

She shook her head. "Not me," she whispered. "He hit…he hit…"

"Who?" Allan asked again.

"Mum," she told her, her voice barely audible. "He hit her."

"Oh, Eve…" Allan wrapped her in his embrace once more, resting his chin on the top of her head. He had no idea of what to say; he knew that he couldn't make it better.

"I never, ever thought he'd do something like that," she said, pulling away from Allan and reaching down to pick up her bag that had fallen to the floor. "Everything at home has just gone to hell." Reaching into the bag she pulled out a small bottle of vodka and unscrewed the cap with shaking hands. "Christmas," she spat out bitterly, her voice venomous. "Here's to _family_." She raised the bottle in a mockery of a toast.

Allan stared at the bottle, and then lifted his eyes to Eve's face. Her eyes were hollow, and as she lifted the bottle to her lips as if it was the only thing that could dull the pain, he felt a familiar stab of anger. He had seen that look far too many times before.

As she tipped the bottle to take a sip Allan snatched hold of her wrist, closing his fingers in a vicelike grip. "No," he said firmly, using his strength to force her arm down and the bottle from her lips. "That isn't the answer."

"What would you know?" she snarled at him, wrenching her arm from his grip.

"More than you think," Allan replied, thinking that in any other situation he would laugh at the horrible irony of her question.

Eve stared at him. "You don't know anything!" She stood up, eyes flashing at him fiercely. "You don't know what it's like to cower in your bedroom listening to your parents hurling abuse at each other! You don't know what it's like when the two people who are meant to love you more than anything in the world stop caring about you, because they're too busy with their own violent arguments."

"You're right," Allan agreed, standing up to face her. He felt quite vulnerable sitting down with the furious, emotional girl standing over him. "I don't know what that's like. But I know what this can do to you." He reached out, grasping her wrist again, forcing it upwards so the bottle danced in her line of vision.

"It makes me feel better."

"It will kill you!" Allan bellowed at her.

An uneasy silence fell over the pair, both stunned by the ferocity of Allan's shout. He immediately regretted his outburst and opened his mouth to apologise but Eve was backing away, her eyes fearful.

"You're just like him," she whispered. "So _angry_."

"I just want you to understand that you're making a mistake," he replied, his voice still harsh. He wanted to make her feel better, wanted to be sympathetic; but he was so enraged by the sight of the bottle still clutched in her quivering fingers that he couldn't soften his tone.

"I told you, you don't understand! I feel so small, and so useless, and like nothing will ever make me happy again…and then I drink this…" She waved the bottle in the air. "It makes me happy."

"No it doesn't! It makes you think that you're happy, but it makes things even worse." Allan finally succeeded in wrenching the bottle from her fingers. "This stuff is _evil_." As if to punctuate his words he hurled the bottle against the wall where it smashed, shattered glass raining down upon the santa that smiled benignly from his perch atop the television. Allan stared at her, understanding the wild look in her eyes better than she could ever know, and shook his head. "I can't do this again. I can't go through this… If you're going to keep drinking that poison, you have to go."

Eve stared at him, her feral expression softening as hurt shimmered through the anger. "I thought you liked me," she whispered. "I thought you would help."

"Eve, I – "

"No!" She shoved past him, snatching her bag from the sofa. "Stay away from me."

She slammed her way out the front door and stormed off down the road. Allan stared after her, his anger simmering and guilt beginning to creep in through the fury. Closing the door he looked towards the ceiling, where his father was sleeping upstairs, and pulled his mobile from his pocket to call Much.

**XX**

"Marian will kill you!" Much exclaimed, trying to pull Robin away from where he lingered by the Ann Summers window. "You can't buy her _underwear_."

"Why not?" Robin smirked back at him. "Hopefully I'll be seeing it soon, and at least I'll know what to expect."

"You – you – " Much gaped at him, opening and closing his mouth like a fish. Robin burst out laughing.

"I'm joking, you idiot. I'm going to buy her a necklace. Come on."

Much followed Robin as he continued down the street, until they reached the jewellers. As Robin perused the items in the window Much felt his phone vibrate.

Pulling it out of his pocket he frowned at the word _Allan_ flickering on the screen. "Why is Allan calling me?" he asked rhetorically, tempted to cancel the call without answering it - ever since the altercation in the Yogi there had been no love lost between the two. But his curiosity won and he flicked the phone open, lifting it to his ear. "Hi." As Much listened to the garbled voice on the other end of the line his face fell into an expression that Robin would have found comical, had he not realised that whatever the message was, it was bad news. "She – what? And you let her go?! Allan, you absolute, pigheaded…yes, okay, I'll try. Where should I look? Well, I don't know either! A great help you are!"

He snapped the phone closed with as much force as he could muster, running his free hand through his hair, twisting the strands into a wild mess with his frantic fingertips.

"What is it?" Robin asked. "Is Allan alright?"

"Allan is a bloody idiot!" Much replied. "I have to go."

Before Robin could utter another sound Much was gone, running down the road in the direction of the bus stop. Eve was upset, she was angry, she was hurt; and from what Allan had said, it sounded like she would be looking to drown her sorrows. He had to find her.

The only problem was, he had no idea where to start looking.

**XX**

Much sank down to sit on a low wall that bordered someone's garden, running a desperate hand through his tousled hair and pushing his glasses more firmly onto his nose. He frowned down at the pavement, feeling like a failure; he had been searching for ages, and had found no sign of Eve.

He sighed deeply, watching his breath freeze into a cloud in front of his nose before drifting away in the air. _Think, Much, think!_ He wracked his brains, trying desperately to remember every word Eve had ever spoken to him, begging his brain to remember some tidbit of information that would provide a clue as to her whereabouts.

As if a lightbulb had suddenly sprung into existence and lit up above his head, Much leapt to his feet. They had been talking about Christmas the week before, and Eve had said their family tradition was to walk to the park after Christmas dinner and feed the ducks.

Much took off at a sprint, running until his lungs burned. The cold air hurt every time he inhaled and he soon slowed to a fast walk, almost tripping over his own feet in his haste.

Eventually he reached the park and stumbled down the path towards the pond, footsteps heavy on the frozen ground. The barren trees, stripped of their leaves, arched over his head.

The pond came into sight and he picked up his pace. Reaching the path that ran around the circumference of the pond he paused, scanning the area, but saw no flash of blonde hair. He started to hurry along the path, peering into every clump of bushes and behind every tree, until finally he saw a patch of grey behind a rhododendron.

The grey was Eve's coat, and as he skirted around the bush Much found the girl sitting on the ground, hugging her knees to her chest. He came to an abrupt halt, noticing the empty bottle tossed carelessly into the undergrowth, and realised he had to approach with caution.

"Eve?" He said her name gently, crouching down to the ground so he was at her eye level. His muscles tautened as she lifted her gaze to his, her blue eyes dull and lifeless. "Are you alright?"

She gave a humourless laugh, dropping her gaze back down to her hands. Much realised that she was shaking and shrugged his coat off, barely noticing the frigid air assaulting him. Eve didn't flinch as he draped the coat over her shoulders, still staring down with dead eyes.

"Did you drink all of that?" Much asked, pointing at the bottle, trying to keep his voice steady. He didn't want his fear to infiltrate his speech, knowing that it would make his voice tremble. She still didn't respond. "I think you need some water," Much continued, searching desperately for an answer to the problem in front of him. "Stay here, I'll be right back. Don't move."

Straightening up, Much took off at a panicked trot, heading towards a small kiosk further down the path. He bought a bottle of water, handing over the money with a shaking hand, before hastening back to Eve.

The bottle hit the ground with a dull thud as he rounded the rhododendron bush and found Eve slumped to the ground, eyes closed. "Eve?" He reached down and touched her gently, not wanting to scare her, but she did not respond. "Eve? Can you hear me?" His voice rose a pitch and he started to shake her, but still received no response. "Oh god…oh god…"

Tearing at his hair with one hand Much pulled out his phone with the other, dialling 999 with trembling fingers. "I need an ambulance…my friend, she's drunk, and she won't wake up. We're in Oak Hill Park, next to the duck pond…okay…just hurry, please!" Ending the call he quickly found Allan's number and pressed call. "I found her – Allan, she's passed out, I'm so scared. We're next to the pond at the park, please come down I need – " Much choked, finally letting his terror get the better of him. "Please, just come."

He hung up and shoved the phone back in his pocket, kneeling down next to Eve. He adjusted his coat so it covered her and took her hand, rubbing the cold flesh, pressing it to his cheek.

It seemed like hours before he heard footsteps on the path. Much stood up, his bones aching from being forced into a cramped position in the cold, and saw Allan jogging towards him. He let out a massive sigh of relief and waved him over – finally, he wasn't the only one responsible. He could share his fear with someone else.

Allan walked around the bush and stopped dead, staring down at Eve's prone form. Much had expect an "Oh my god" or even a "Bloody hell" but all he got was silence. Allan just stared down at the body, his eyes flicking to the empty bottle. There was the sound of sirens wailing in the distance and Much sagged in relief, but Allan tensed. "I can't do this," he whispered. "I'm sorry Much, I can't…"

Much looked at him in shock as he started to back away. "Allan, what are you doing? Allan!" He shouted the last word as Allan broke into a run, disappearing faster than he had arrived. "What is _wrong_ with you?!" Much yelled after his retreating back.

**XX**

Will stared at the sterile white tiles beneath his feet, thinking how quickly life could change. An hour before he had been looking at the tiles in the cinema toilets, and now here he was in a hospital waiting room, waiting to find out if his friend was going to die of alcohol poisoning.

The phone call had come just as he summoned the energy to return to the film, Much gabbling incoherently down the line. All Will had managed to gather was that Eve was in hospital. After a quick phone call arranging for his dad to pick Luke up at the cinema he had jumped on a bus to the hospital and now here he was, listening to the clock tick ominously onwards, hope fading with every second.

Much was alternating between pacing impatiently up and down, and sitting tensely on a chair. The boy, normally so talkative, had panicked himself into a state of silent, uneasy worry. The only words Will had managed to get out of him were "Allan is a bastard" – he wasn't quite sure what had happened, but Allan was not present.

Robin was the only other member of the gang that had joined the waiting room vigil. Marian was on her way back from her auntie's; Robin had called her, and she had persuaded her father to turn the car around and bring her home. Djaq was presumably still at the cinema, although Will had left several messages on her answer phone telling her what had happened.

The door to the room banged open and there was a clatter of feet upon the tiles. Will looked up and found Djaq hurrying towards them, worry etched on her features. To his displeasure, Amir was following her.

"What's happened?" she cried, looking wildly from Will to Much and back again. "I got your messages and came straight here. Where's Eve? What happened?"

"She drank a bottle of vodka," Will explained, seeing that Much was still incapable of speech. "Much found her in the park."

"But – but – " Djaq spluttered. "I don't understand, she was fine this morning."

"We don't think she was trying to – " Will faltered, but the words _kill herself_ hung unspoken in the air. "She went to Allan's, upset – something happened, we don't know what, and she left. Allan called Much, Much went to find her, and she passed out."

"What did Allan do?" Djaq asked sharply. "If he hurt her…"

"He wouldn't," Will replied staunchly, but his mind was in turmoil. Allan was his best friend, he trusted him – but what had he done to send Eve into such a state?

The door that led to the accident and emergency room swung upon and Will, Much and Robin all jolted to their feet. A tired-looking nurse walked out, clutching a clipboard, and smiled at them. "Are you here with Eve Johnson?" They all nodded in affirmation. "It's a good job you got her here so quickly. She's had her stomach pumped, and she should be fine now."

There were four sighs of relief, Robin catching hold of Much as he sagged downwards into a chair. "Can we see her?" Robin asked, seeing that Much was in too much shock to ask himself.

The nurse nodded. "Two at a time, please. And be gentle; she's in a lot of discomfort."

Much jumped to his feet again and followed the nurse. Robin glanced at Will, who gestured for him to go ahead, and he followed Much.

As the door swung closed Djaq turned to Amir. "Thank you for coming," she started, in such a way that Will instantly realised she was actually annoyed that he had come. "But Eve is okay now, and I'm going to wait to see her. You should go home."

"I want to stay with you," Amir replied.

"No," Djaq said, a little too quickly. "Please, go home. I insist. I might be here a long time."

"Fine." Amir looked put out, but forced a smile. "Call me?"

Djaq nodded and let out a tiny sigh of relief as he turned and left. She sank down into the seat next to Will, who was staring steadfastly ahead. "I only went to the cinema with him because my parents wanted me too," she said quietly.

"You don't have to explain," Will replied.

"Yes, I do." She gazed at him earnestly and Will turned his head to look at her, surprised by the urgency in her voice. "My parents – they want me to marry a Muslim. They think Amir is the right boy for me, but he's not. I was so worried about Eve but I didn't want him to come here with me, I only wanted…" She trailed off, blushing suddenly, no longer able to look Will in the eye. "You," she murmured to her knees.

There was a long pause. Djaq began to think that her confession had been lost to the heavens, but realised Will had heard when he reached out and squeezed her hand.

**XX**

Allan groaned when the doorbell rang the following morning. He had been expecting it, but that didn't mean he welcomed Much glowering at him from his doorstep.

Allan let the front door swing open, standing aside so Much could walk past him. The indignant teen strode into the living room, turning round to face Allan, who had followed him.

"You let her go." His voice was heavy with accusation, and laced with remnants of the fear he had suffered the day before. "She came to you, upset, and you let her walk away! And look what happened!"

"She left on her own," Allan replied with a shrug, sitting on the arm of a chair. "I couldn't force her to stay here, and I didn't know what was going to happen did I?"

Much snorted. "Typical Allan! Nothing is ever your fault, is it? Then how about you seeing her, half-dead on the ground, and running off?" Allan didn't reply. "See, you haven't got any answers now have you? You're a coward."

Allan stood up, towering over Much, clenching his fists. "I am not a coward," he said tightly, voice simmering with rage. "Don't you dare say that."

"Yes, you are!" Much stood up to him defiantly but Allan could tell how much it was costing him, how nervous he was underneath the bravado. "You left her, and you left me. She could have died, Allan! Why did you do it?"

"I don't have to explain myself to you," Allan snapped.

Much shook his head slowly. "You're right. You don't. But you have to live with yourself." He walked out of the living room, opening the front door, but paused before he left. "If I had left a girl to die, I would never be able to live with my conscience."

The slamming of the door echoed round the house as Allan sank down onto the sofa, his head in his hands.

**XX**

Allan shuddered as he stepped into the hospital. He hated the impersonal white walls, the sad and hurting people, the clinical clicking of the nurses' heels upon the tiles.

"Eve Johnson?" he mumbled to the receptionist, who gave him a room number and pointed him in the direction of a corridor. He walked away slowly, forcing himself to continue until he reached the room. His heart constricted as he peered through the window of the room, finding Eve looking frail and delicate, propped up on pillows in the hospital bed. She was pale, her golden hair a splash of colour against the white pillows, wide eyes standing out against translucent skin.

Robin and Marian were sitting by the bed, one on either side, their faces drawn. As Allan slipped into the room they looked up, Marian's face twisting in fury as she saw him. Standing, she opened her mouth to shout at him, but Allan held up his hands in supplication.

"I'm not here for a fight," he told her. "I just want a word with Eve."

"How dare you – you left her!" Marian spluttered. "You weak, spineless…"

"Marian." Eve's voice sounded almost ghostly as it floated from the pale figure beneath the blankets. "It's okay."

Marian gaped at her for a moment, then let Robin take her hand and guide her out of the room. Allan shuffled awkwardly on the spot until Eve patted the chair next to her, and he sat down.

"I'm sorry," Eve said quietly, looking up at him with honest eyes.

Allan faltered, rendered momentarily speechless. He had come with a speech prepared, but those two words completely threw him. "Not being funny, but I think I should be the one saying sorry. That's why I came here – to apologise."

Eve smiled slightly. "Thank you. But Allan, I should never have come to you. I was a mess."

"And I made things worse!" Allan twisted his hands in his lap. "Much came to see me this morning. He wanted to know why I left you, and I told him I didn't have to explain myself to him. But I have to explain myself to you."

"You don't – "

"Look, I hate guilt, and I hate letting people down. So please, let me say this." She nodded and he took a deep breath before continuing. "It's my dad. He – he's an alcoholic. And seeing you like that – it just reminded me of times when I've found him, passed out in a gutter, thinking he was going to die."

Eve tried to disguise her surprise and reached out, offering silent comfort by squeezing his hand. "I'm sorry I put you through that again."

Allan shook his head. "I shouldn't have let it affect me like that. I should have been able to separate my dad, and you. You needed me, and I failed… Look, Eve, yesterday you said that you thought I liked you. And I do. But I'm no good for you."

Eve shook her head. "I don't agree with you. Maybe _you_ need _me_."

Allan smiled. "I need something! But that's just it, Eve. I'm a mess; you need someone steady, and reliable, someone who you can trust."

"You mean Much, don't you." Allan nodded and Eve sighed. "I do like him; honestly I do. He's just so _nice_, I don't feel like I'm good enough for him."

"You need nice right now," Allan replied. "And you deserve Much. Whether or not he deserves you…well, he'll have to prove himself to me."

Eve snorted. "You're going to vet all my potential future boyfriends now?"

Allan nodded seriously. "For once I'm not joking. I'm going to look out for you, Eve. I promise."

She smiled. "And I'm here for you. If you ever need to talk, about your dad and that…" She squeezed his hand tighter. "Are you going to tell the others?"

He shook his head. "No. And you're not to tell anyone either. Promise me."

"I promise," she replied. "It's your secret to tell, not mine. But Allan, the others are going to give you a hard time, especially Much. I'll do all I can to calm him down, but he's really angry with you."

Allan shrugged. "I can handle Much. I just couldn't handle you thinking that I abandoned you because I was selfish, or a coward."

"I don't think you're a coward," she replied seriously. "I think you're brave."

A few minutes later Allan left the hospital, a contented smile on his face, feeling happier than he had in a long time.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Ooh some secrets have been revealed!! And a nice dose of Christmas angst has been delivered...

Thanks as ever for the reviews, you guys are awesome :)


	16. I want to be honest with you all

**Chapter 16: I want to be honest with you all**

Marian sat on the wall outside Eve's house, rubbing her gloved hands together. She was wrapped up warmly but the night air was chilly, freezing her breath into little white clouds every time she exhaled.

Light spilled out onto the garden path as the front door opened. Marian stood up as Eve walked out the house, bundled up in a winter coat, a scarf pulled up over her nose.

"Are you ready for this?" Marian asked as the two fell into step, walking down the street.

Eve nodded. "I have to face everyone sooner or later. Not that I have any idea what we're actually going to do."

Marian chuckled. "Me neither, Djaq was so secretive on the phone! All she said was to meet at the park and bring a blanket and an open mind. Oh, and that Will was going to build a fire."

"I hope she's not going to make us do a ritualistic naked dance around the fire or something," Eve joked, and Marian snorted with laughter.

"Did you persuade Much to come?"

"Yeah," Eve sighed. "When he found out Allan was going to be there he refused, but I talked him into it. He's going to have to get used to Allan being around sooner or later; he's part of the gang, after all."

"He shouldn't be, after what he did to you," Marian muttered.

"Marian, I told you! He explained it to me, and I forgave him; I can't tell you what he told me, but please just trust me that his actions were justified."

"I can't." Marian shrugged. "Sorry, but we're going to have to agree to disagree."

They had reached the park and climbed over the wall; the gates were locked at night. The park was silent and dark, but Marian had a torch, which helped to dispel the eerie atmosphere. Faint strains of music and laughter drifted to them on the breeze, from New Years Eve parties being held in the vicinity. The two girls began walking up the hill, towards where Djaq had told them to meet, ducking off the path halfway up and disappearing behind a low bank of bushes. There was a patch of grass sheltered from the wind, and the rest of the gang were there.

Will was kneeling on the ground, stacking twigs into a pyramid whilst Djaq crumpled up sheets of newspaper and pushed them into the middle. Robin and Much were talking, Much with his back to Allan, who was sitting quietly on his own. Eve sat down next to Allan, the unusually silent boy giving her a wan smile.

As soon as the gang was settled comfortably, wrapped in blankets and soaking in the warmth from the fire that Will had started, Djaq stood up.

"Hi," she started, sounding nervous. "I asked you all to come here because the past few weeks have been…strange. And we need something to bring us all together. A new year starts tomorrow – a new start. So I thought maybe we could do something that me and my friends at home always used to do." She fumbled in the plastic bag at her feet, pulling out a handful of pens and a notepad. "Everyone needs two sheets of paper and a pen," she told the confused people in front of her. "On one of them, write down something from the past that you want to forget, and we'll burn them. On the second page, write down a New Years resolution or a hope for the future."

"Are they going to be kept secret?" Marian asked.

"No. You have to read them out."

The gang immediately became more sceptical. "Not being funny, but there's some stuff that's private," Allan spoke up.

"That's kind of the idea," Djaq replied. "Look, we're all friends, and I think we need to be honest with each other. If there are things you really don't want to share, then fine. But please, just give it a try."

"I think it's a good idea," Will piped up, and Djaq smiled down at him gratefully.

"Me too," Eve offered her support. Her willingness to share the turbulence of the past weeks with them seemed to encourage the others, and for a few moments the only sound was the scratching of pens on paper and the crackling of the fire.

"Shall I go first?" Djaq asked, once everyone seemed to be finished. The others all nodded, looking nervous, and Djaq stood up. "I've been thinking a lot recently about how I've been doing things to make other people happy. My parents expect certain things, and whilst I still plan to respect them, I've realised that it isn't worth doing things that make me unhappy. So that is what I'm burning." She held the piece of paper over the fire, and cast a sideways glance at Will. "And that includes seeing Amir again." She dropped the paper into the flames. "And my New Years resolution is to find a balance between my happiness and my parent's expectations." She folded up her second piece of paper, put it inside a small tin, and sat down again.

"I'll go next," Eve offered, standing up. "You all know these past few weeks have been rough for me. But my dad has gone now; it's just me, mum and Jake at home. So I am burning all the family crap that's been going on." She threw the paper into the fire, watching the flames claim it. "And my resolution is to not touch a single drop of alcohol."

She tucked the piece of paper into the tin and sat down again. Allan reached out, giving her hand a squeeze. He knew that she meant it, and was proud of her for declaring her intentions to the rest of the group.

"Allan?" Djaq asked. "Will you go next?"

He shook his head. "I want to go last."

"I'll go," Marian offered, detaching herself from Robin's warm arms and standing up, looking down at them all with honest eyes. "I always used to do the easy thing in life. I spent five years being friends with Guy and Tony and the rest of them, because it was safer to be popular than stand up for what I believed in. But then I met all of you, and realised there are important things in life; you have to stand up and be counted no matter what it costs you." She crumpled the piece of paper in her hand and threw it into the heart of the fire. "So I am burning taking the easy way out. And my resolution is to always stand up for what I believe, because I have to be true to myself." She took the tin from Djaq and slipped her second piece of paper inside it.

The four boys were left and they all eyed each other, none of them feeling quite comfortable with exposing their thoughts. Will caught the nervous look on Djaq's face and, knowing that she was afraid they all thought her idea was stupid, stood up.

"I don't have anything to burn," he started, uncurling the fingers of his right hand and showing them all his empty palm. "I don't regret things – if I think that something is wrong or bad, I try and fix it. But sometimes life does get crappy, and it was always just me and Allan against the world. But now – now I have all of you as friends, and my resolution is to always be here if you need me." He spoke to the whole gang but his eyes were on Djaq as he lowered himself back to the ground.

"Me next," Much volunteered himself, standing up and pushing his glasses more firmly onto the bridge of his nose. He cleared his throat noisily and unfolded his scrap of paper with nervous fingers, squinting down at it in the flickering firelight. "I never say what I want to say," he told them all. "I do what you tell me, Robin, and I try to look out for all of you because I love you all. But maybe it's time for me to do what _I_ want to do." He tossed a piece of paper on the fire and looked down at his second piece, before crumpling it into a ball as if deciding that he knew what he wanted to say without having to read it. "So I am going to say what I want to say." He took a deep breath and turned to look at Eve. "I like you, Eve, and I want to look after you. So whenever you are ready to let me, I'm here." He sat down abruptly, blushing furiously and steadfastly looking in the opposite direction to Eve.

Allan nudged the girl, chuckling at the faint tinge of pink in her pleased face, and looked at Robin. "Go on Rob, after you."

Robin shrugged. "I don't really have anything to say."

"Robin," Marian said warningly, her eyes flicking towards Djaq, who was biting nervously at her lip.

With a deep sigh Robin heaved himself to his feet. "I don't really have any regrets either. I think my life is pretty awesome." He winked at them all and they all groaned at his cockiness. "If there is one thing I wish had happened differently, it's the fact that I lost touch with Major. But that's all sorted now. So I guess my only resolution is to never let it happen again."

He sat down again, Marian snuggling up to his side in acknowledgement of his loving words. Allan jumped up to his feet, trying to project his usual brimming confidence, but knowing that it was all bravado. His hands were clasped behind his back to disguise the fact that his fingers were twitching nervously and his heart was hammering against his ribs.

"I've been lying to you all," he began with a shrug. "Well, not telling you the truth, anyway. Which is quite common for me, really. But it's about time you all knew something, and I'm never serious like I'm about to be so pay attention."

The others, who had not been expecting to hear a word of meaningful honesty pass Allan's lips, looked up at him in surprise. Allan usually avoided revealing anything truthful about himself by reeling off fantastical tales laced with ridiculous comedy and lewd jokes, saying a lot without really saying anything at all. But they could all sense a rarely-heard grain of candour in his tone, barely detectable beneath the offhand statement.

"I don't want to burn anything, and I don't have a resolution. Don't want to make a promise I won't keep. But I want to be honest with you all; you deserve that." He took a deep breath. "My dad's an alcoholic."

The frank admission was followed by a rush of air, as Allan expelled a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. The words hovered in the air and Allan half wished he could reach out and snatch them back, swallow them back into the privacy of his mind and cover the awkward silence with a bellow of jokey laughter – but he stood firm, meeting the gaze of each of his friends, taking strength from the pride in Eve's eyes.

"I – " Much stammered, staring up at Allan, his mouth wide with unabashed horror. "I understand now." Shame claimed his features, his mouth twisting into a shape that Allan would have found comical had his tongue not been glued to the roof of his mouth with nerves. "I am so, so sorry."

Allan shrugged. "I don't want your pity."

"I didn't mean it like that. I just – I didn't give you a chance to explain, when Eve was in hospital. But I understand now – why you couldn't help, I mean."

"It's not your fault," Allan replied awkwardly, unused to reassuring others but unwilling to hold Much responsible for his own ignorance.

Much stood up, pushing his glasses up onto the bridge of his nose with one hand whilst wiping the other on his jeans before offering it to Allan. Allan grasped it and gave it a firm shake, trying not to laugh at the look of relief on Much's face.

"Don't be getting all soppy on me," he warned. "I'm not being funny but I bet your mascara isn't waterproof."

Everyone laughed, a little too brightly, but it broke the tension. Over the laughter came the faint strains of a universal countdown, the drunken shouts of the final seconds of the year echoing in the stillness of the park.

"It's almost midnight!" Marian realised in shock, squinting at the watch on her wrist. "Come on!"

Scrambling to her feet she hauled Robin up with her and the others followed suit, grasping hands as they stood in a circle around the fire. "Five!" They all took up the cry. "Four! Three! Two! One! Happy New Year!"

They chorused the words in a cacophony of cheer and smiles, hugging each other and grinning with the newfound closeness born of their honest confessions, until the merriment died down along with the fire. The chill air forced them to stamp out the dying embers and, after Djaq buried the tin containing their resolutions, the gang walked across the park and clambered out onto the road.

They set off in the direction of their homes, walking close together, comfortable in a contented silence until they reached the turn off for Djaq's house.

"I'll walk you home," Will offered to the girl at his side. Djaq opened her mouth to protest and he cut her off. "I'm not asking if you want me to, I'm telling you that I am. It's late."

Djaq laughed. "Then I suppose there is no point in me arguing." They set off in the direction of Djaq's house, walking in companionable silence. After a few quiet minutes Djaq spoke up. "I was so surprised by what Allan said. All this time, and I never knew…I assume you did?"

Will nodded. "I've always known. I can't remember a time when I knew Allan, and didn't know that his dad drank too much. Even when we were little and didn't know what an alcoholic was, we knew that there was something wrong with him."

"So that is why Allan doesn't drink?"

"Yeah. He's always the life and soul of the party, even without alcohol; I think he's constantly trying to prove to himself that he can have a good time without getting wasted."

Djaq nodded thoughtfully. "When we've been at parties and stuff, it always seemed like maybe his smile was a little _too_ bright. Like he was forcing it."

"That's Allan. I mean, most of the time he _is_ having a good time – he's just determined to always be happy. He doesn't want to end up like his dad."

"So when he said his dad was away…"

"Rehab," Will confirmed. "He's been in a few times, always falls off the wagon though. He was there that time we crashed at Allan's, but he was drinking again within a fortnight."

Djaq shook her head. "I feel so guilty now, for judging him for leaving Eve. It all makes sense now."

"He's had to call an ambulance for his dad a few times," Will explained. "He was only eight the first time. His mum had already left, couldn't cope with it anymore. He had to come and live with us whilst his dad went into rehab, but then he was allowed home again. And when he saw Eve…he just couldn't go through that again. It breaks his heart every time."

As soon as the idea of a broken heart was raised, the image lingered in the air between them and made the atmosphere awkward in a second. As they walked past a small cluster of shops, Djaq reached out and tugged on Will's sleeve. As the boy came to a halt Djaq turned to him.

"I need to talk you," she started, taking a deep breath. "I actually wrote down a second resolution, that I didn't tell anyone else, and that was to be honest with you. I forced Marian to tell Allan that I didn't like you – it was a lie."

Will blinked at her. "It was?"

Djaq nodded, ducking her head, trying to hide the red tinge in her cheeks. "I do like you. A lot."

There was a long silence as Will stared at her, trying to get his head round the news that his feelings were not unrequited after all. Excited hope began to bubble in his stomach but he forced himself to control it. "So – "

"But nothing can change," Djaq said quickly, as if getting the words out faster would diminish the pain of their meaning. "My parents, they expect me to be with a Muslim. And I can't disappoint them."

"But back there – you said – " He gestured helplessly back towards the park and Djaq forced her eyes from his face, unable to look at his hurt and confusion any longer.

"I said I still plan to respect them," she reminded him gently. "I'm not going to do things, like date Amir, purely for their sake – because I didn't like him. But I'm not going to go out of my way to disappoint them, in order to secure my own happiness. Being with you – it would make me happy, but it my parents would hate it. And that would kill me, Will. I couldn't do that to them."

There was another long pause. "I understand," Will finally said, and started walking again.

Djaq stared after him, her relief at finally getting her feelings out in the open quelled by the unease that came from not following her heart. She had known he would understand, had known that he would be kind and respect her decision, because that was Will. But part of her wished that he was angry her – she deserved to be shouted at, deserved to have her own guilt compounded.

"I'm sorry," she called after him, knowing how empty and ineffectual her words were as they floated in the air between them. She saw Will's slender shoulders hunch upwards in a shrug, but he kept his face turned away from her and she didn't try to catch him up, unwilling to see the disappointment that she had caused in the eyes of a boy she loved.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Hmm. Not my favourite chapter, but I guess it says what I wanted it to say!

Sorry about the wait between updates. I really struggled with this chapter - plus, my best friend FINALLY came home and a few others came back from uni, so I've actually had a life wider than work and RH fanfic. Crazy, I know. I feel like I need to dive back into the RH world and immerse myself again!

I want series 3, like, now.


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